Wolf's Rain Part One: The Journey
by Wolf81
Summary: A she-wolf born of the blood of the Flower Maiden and the Chozen Wolf. A wolf on a journey to save his race. Join them as they try to open Paradise, a place where wolves will have a future in a dying world.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue: The Legend of Paradise

There is a legend that speaks of Paradise, the legendary wolves, Kiba, Tsume, Hige, and Toboe, Blue the Wolfdog, and the Flower Maiden, Cheza, who sacrificed all to open it. These five wolves almost succeded if not for the insanity and maniacial machinations of one particular Noble, Darcia the Third. Darcia's family was cursed by paradise when his Grandfather, Darcia the First, tried to open Paradise, and dissappeared. This curse turned Darcia's left eye into a wolf's eye allowing him to see past the human illusions wolves cast on themselves, see Paradise for what it truely is, and use the wolf eye to put humans to sleep. The downside is that the wolf eye causes extreme pain and loss of sanity. This curse of Paradise was passed down to Darcia the Third. Darcia's one true love was Harmona, twin sister to the Noble Jagura. Harmona was stricken with Paradise sickness, which steals your soul but leaves your body still living. Darcia had managed to somehow succeed in turning himself into a wolf and attempted to use the Flower Maiden to reach Paradise. in the final battle, he killed all but one wolf, the great white wolf known as Kiba. The battle between these two was brutal and bloody, painting the virgin snow around them crimson. In the end, Darcia got the upper hand and mortally wounded Kiba, leaving him for dead. When he attempted to enter Paradise, however, he was incinerated and destoryed. That is except for the wolf eye, which was left behind. As Cheza held a dying Kiba one last time, she said that they would meet again in the next life. Then, she sacrificed herself so that the world would freeze over and life would eventually begin anew. Unfortunately, Darcia's wolf eye tainted the land, bringing greed, envy, strife, and all other evils into this new world. This is what we do know about Paradise and the Rebirth.

However, legends don't always tell the whole story.

As Cheza held Kiba before her sacrifice, Kiba's and Cheza's blood mixed together on the ground. During the rebirth of the world, a field of lunar flowers bloomed in that exact same spot at the same time. The true full moon was shining on the flowers, illuminating them in it's powerful glow. The world turned and life went on for man, beast, and wolves, until one day, a she wolf pup emerged from that lunar flower field, fur a pure white, eyes that was the same color as the moons light, ancient markings down her back and legs. A pup who had no idea of the roll she was to play in destiny.

And so begins our journey.

Chapter 1

The moon beat down on the frozen landscape providing it's soft light. It was bitterly cold. The winds had picked up, blowing snow in sheets across the valley. a blizzard had set in, snow blowing so hard and thick that one couldn't even see their own nose much less where they were going. This, however, did not seem to bother the figure making his way over the horizon. He kept running full speed as if his life depended on it. He kept moving as he seemed to materialize from out of nowhere, his white fur blending in with the snow, his golden eyes piercing the night. He had been traveling for two straight days now and would need to rest soon. He was hungry but was able to pick up his strength from basking in the moonlight. He stopped as he came to the mountainside. The white wolf started sniffing around for somewhere to rest. He was about twenty miles from the city he was traveling towards and wanted to be well rested and have his strength up when he arrived. He new he would need it. As he searched for a cave or shelter, the same voice he had been hearing for years now came to him again, this time louder and stronger. The lilting voice of a girl, or an angel that was sweet and melodic. every time he heard the voice, it was almost like he could feel her emotions, almost as if they had some kind of spiritual connection.

"We promised we would meet again, Kiba. Search, search for Paradise."

Kiba didn't know what it all meant. All he knows is that some instinct told him to follow this voice and he had been for years. It's not like the desire to search for Paradise wasn't already there. He had practically been born with it. Ever since the destruction of his pack, he had been hearing this voice that was telling him to search for Paradise. And so he started running. And he kept running, not staying in one place for too long. When he didn't find what he was searching for, he would start moving again and here lately, the smell of lunar flowers and the voice was drawing him toward the human city of Lowstrom.

A gunshot pierced the night. Kiba felt a searing, white hot pain slice across his right hind leg, painting the snow red. He yelped in pain and started running as fast as he could, the need to escape from danger barely hampered by the pain that was coursing through his leg now. Two more shots rang out but missed their intended target, one of them whizzing by his face so close that he felt his fur on the right side of his face ruffle with the velocity of it's passing. Kiba continue running as fast as his legs would carry him, the thought of seeking shelter forgotten now with the danger so close. He heard a dog's barking fading away as he ran. 'Who the hell is shooting at me?' he thought. He had spent most of his life in the mountains so he didn't know about the turmoil that was sweeping the land, nor how aggressive humans were getting towards wolves. He continued running toward the city for that was where the scent of lunar flowers was coming from, becoming more prevalent the closer he got.

"I'll just have to find somewhere to rest in the city," he muttered to himself bitterly, gritting his teeth against the pain. He had hoped not to spend one night in that nasty, polluted city, with man and their machines and smog. But it didn't look like he would have a choice now. whoever had shot at him was tracking him now. He could smell the scent of the dog, and a little fainter, the man. He gave a low growl and continued his hobbling run toward the city.

The man stood up from where he was checking the blood spilled on the snow. He was middle aged, about fifty or so. His black dog was sniffing the droplets. She then raised her head toward the city of Lowstrom and gave a low growl. she looked back at the human that was with her, her piercing blue eyes meeting his brown ones. The man readjusted the brown trench coat he was wearing and pulled his brown, wide brimmed hat low over his eyes. He took a flask out of his pocket, popped the cap, and took a sip of the bourbon that was in there. He put the flask away and reloaded his rifle. The weapon was top of the line, a Glenstra m-1050-p. This gun had a 10 round chamber that carried high velocity rounds, An oak stock and grip, titanium barrel, trigger, and trigger guard. The internals was made out of billet aluminum, a blow off valve for better gas expulsion, and a hair trigger. the barrel itself was rifeled in such a specialized way that it increased the velocity of the round to double that of a standard rifle. In other words, it was one hell of a specially modded weapon.

He looked at his dog and said, 'We almost got him that time Blue." She cocked her head at him as he spoke. "But now he's hurt," he continued. "And according to the blood trail he left, it looks like he's heading toward the city of Lowstrom. It looks like we can finally put this demon out of his misery once and for all." Blue gave a bark and wagged her tail. He looked at her one last time and said, "Alright girl, let's get this show on the road." And with that they started following the trail of blood left behind by Kiba toward the city.

Midtown Cycles was set at the heart of Downtown Lowstrom. The last customer had just roared out of the parking lot. A man with silver hair pulled back in a ponytail, who looked to be late teens or early twentys, pulled the garage door down for the final time that day, locking it. He then spent the next hour cleaning the shop up. This included cleaning up tools, cleaning up any fluids, sweeping, and the like. As he was finishing up for the day, the owner of Midtown Cycles, a man of average height with a bald head and a white handlebar mustache, walked into the shop and handed Tsume his pay check. "We sure are gonna miss ya around here Claw," the man said, lighting a cigarette. "You sure there's nothing I can do to convince you to stay?" Tsume took his final check out of the man's hand. "Yeah Clutch, I'm sure,"he replied. Clutch looked at him with his blue eyes and said, "what did I do to make you want to quit, huh?" Tsume looked him in the eye and replied, "you didn't do anything Clutch, I just feel it's time to move on, that's all."

"Well I'm sure gonna miss the hell out of ya. Whenever ya come back down this way, don't forget to drop in for a bit." Clutch went over to the mini fridge in the corner of the shop and grabbed a couple of beers, tossing one to Tsume. they both cracked the frosty cans open and took a sip before Clutch continued. "You know your like a son to me, right?"

Tsume looked away uncomfortabley, taking another sip of his beer. "Cut that sappy shit out will ya Clutch? you know that stuff makes me uncomfortable. Besides, you said your gonna bring that boy of yours on so it ain't like i'm leaving you short handed or anything." Clutch laughed and the two men drank in silence for a few minutes until Clutch looked at Tsume and said, "well Claw, whatever you do, giv'em hell."

Tsume grinned and, after finishing his beer, went to the bathroom to change out of his work uniform to his typical street clothes. Black jeans, grey short sleeved shirt, black leather jacket, and biker boots. When he was finished, he came back into the shop where clutch was starting on another repair for that day. Clutch looked at him and said," I always new you were a restless spirit."

"You have no idea how right you are." Tsume replied. "And as a matter of fact, I..."

He was interupped by the sound of breaking glass. burning bottles made their way into the shop, shattering glass and catching things on fire. The shop went up in smoke. "Get down!" Tsume cried pulling Clutch down to the ground with him. He covered Clutch as more firebombs came into the shop. Tsume pulled Clutch to his feet.

"Out the back, now," Clutch yelled. Suddenly, they were surrounded by four men. Clutch Swung at the first man, making solid contact against his jaw. He watched with satisfaction as he dropped to the ground, out cold. Tsume was fighting off two men, at once, who had drawn knives on him while Clutch was dealing with the second one. Tsume dodged the first man's attack who had tried to swipe at his face. As he did, he blocked the second mans attack, quickly disarming him and than punching him in the nose. The first man tried to skewer him in the stomache. Tsume dodged to the left. He felt his arms grabbed from behind and, before he could react, he felt a searing pain in his chest as he was cut twice, one across the other, making a red "X" across his chest. He jumped up and kicked his feet out at the man who had just injured him, knocking him back. He threw his head back with all the force he could muster and knocked the other man off him. He jumped on the first man, socking him between the eyes as hard as he could, knocking him out cold. He could still hear the scuffle taking place behind him as Clutch fought the other man. He heard Clutch scream and turned and saw him thrown to the floor. the man was stalking his mentor with a wicked looking knife in his hand. Tsume rushed him and jumped with suprisingly blinding speed. The next instant, blood spurted from the man's throat, painting the front of him red. He gurgled and choked on his own blood as he fell to the floor, dead.

"Get down!" he heard screamed from behind him as something rammed into him, throwing him to the floor, just as a gunshot sounded from behind. He heard a scream of pain and the sound of the body hitting the floor. He turned and took the scene in of Clutch lying on the floor, clutching his chest as blood ran through his fingers, gasping for breath.

"No!" Tsume screamed. He launched himself at the man he had forgotten about as he was trying to protect Clutch. A gunshot went off, the bullet hitting Tsume in the shoulder as he landed on the man. He broke the man's arm that was holding the gun, causing him to scream in agony. Then he shifted to his grey wolf form. The mans eyes widened with fear as Tsume savagly ripped his throat out. He shifted back and made his way weakly over to Clutch, who was lying on the floor with blood pooling around him.

Tsume tried to grab Clutch. "Come on, I'm getting you out of here." The shop was a blazing inferno now. Clutch weakly pushed Tsume away. "Get outta here, it's to late for me," he said weakly.

"No, I'm getting you out of here," Tsume cried out.

"Tsume, I'm not going to make it. It's too bad of a wound. Just know that I am proud of you pup." He gave a small smile. "Now for the last time, get your sorry ass out of here."

Against his better judgement, Tsume ran outside, jumped on his motorcycle, and peeled rubber out of there, and just in the nick of time as the shop blew up behind him, sending the heatwave of the blast over him. In the distance, sirens could be heard as police were coming on the scene.

Tsume's eyes snapped open with a start. He raised his head up looking around as he tried to get his bearings. He was no longer in the burning bike shop but in his one bedroom rundown apartment. He got out of bed, gathering his silver hair into a pony tail, and wandered into the bathroom. He looked into the mirror and fingered the "X" shaped scar on his chest thinking back to his dream that was nothing but a memory of the worst day of his life. He still had no idea why those men burned the shop down and killed his mentor and will probably never know. He got dressed and went into the kitchen and went to the fridge. He pulled out a beer and, closing the fridge with his foot, popped the top on the can. He took a healthy swallow of the stuff, and went to the living room, plopping down on the sofa.

'Has it really been five years?' he thought to himself.

"Damn Clutch, I miss ya you crazy bastard." Tsume killed his beer and then pondered what to do for the day. He had been getting an uneasy feeling for the past couple of days, like something inside him was calling out for him to do something. He just couldn't figure out what.

"Maybe going for a ride will help clear my thoughts. Get me to thinking straight again." Anything was better then sitting around and reflecting on the past.

He grabbed his keys and headed on out the door.

The tires screamed in protest as Tsume sharply took another corner. He straightened the cruiser up and was soon up to a very dangerous speed. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" he yelled. He continued to push the bike to it's limits, relishing the wind blowing in his face. Tsume was never truely happy unless he was living dangerously, pushing it to the brink, flying by the seat of his pants as they say. He continued going at a high rate of speed, living on the edge, when out of the corner of his periphial vision, he caught a flash of white coming from his right.

Tsume cursed and locked the brakes up on the motorcycle, sliding the tail end around ninty degrees, trying to avoid hitting whatever it was. He put his foot down, his boot sliding across the pavement as he fought to keep from spilling the bike.

"What the hell," he exclaimed when he came safely to a complete stop. He sniffed the direction the white blur had been going but couldn't make out exactly what it was among all the other smells of the city.

"Damn humans need to keep their dogs fenced in," he muttered bitterly. He suddenly heard a horn honking from behind him. he looked over his shoulder and saw a car, the man inside blaring his horn at him.

"Come on loser, get out of the way. I'm going to be late to a very importand appointment."

Tsume, gritting his teeth, got off his bike. He made his way over to the man's car and yanked his door open. Tsume grabbed the man by his shirt and jerked him out of the car. The man looked at him with terror in his eyes and exclaimed, "What the hell's wrong with you man." Tsume just glared at him before giving an evil grin. 'Oh, nothing, I'm just sick and tired of you stupid humans running around thinking you own the world. Thinking you can run over anybody without rhyme or reason!" he yelled. "What you don't seem to realize," he continued, "is the fact that if I wanted to, I could rip your heart out and eat it raw. The next time you have a very important appointment, as you put it, than I would suggest you leave earlier. I'm getting sick and tired of you humans and your crap." The last part was said in a deadly whisper. Tsume let the man go and said, "now that we got that cleared up, get back in your car and get the hell outta here before I do something you'll regret."

Tsume stalks back over to his bike and, upon starting it, locks up the front brakes, revs the engine, and burns the back tire. the tire sits there, squealing, and covering the man and his car in smoke, causing him to go into a coughing fit. Tsume then released the front brake and squealed outta there. He continued to ride trying to cool off. He didn't know why what the human said ticked him off so bad.

"Maybe it was that dream this morning," he thought. He looked down at the fuel guage and noticed that he was almost sitting on empty. A few more miles down the road, he stopped at a gas station, pulling up to the pumps. He got off the bike and went inside.

"Hey Tsume," a sweet voice called out. Tsume looked over to the counter.

"Hey Julie, hows life?"

"Oh, you know, been hanging in there." Tsume shakes his head as he walks to the back of the store. He grabs a water and walks back to the counter.

"That gonna do it hon' ", Julie asked.

"No", Tsume said. "I need to get five gallons on pump Two."

As julie was ringing Tsume up, she said, "Mom's having a barbeque this saturday. She would really like it if you come over."

Tsume shakes his head. "I'm busy, maybe some other time.

"Ok, no problem, have a good day."

"Sure", he said." He walked out the door and over to the pump, lifted the nozzle and begin pumping gas into his tank. Several years ago, he had saved Julie from getting hit by a car and every since then, Julie's mom has been crushing on him. Neither one of them could get it into their heads that he is a loaner. That there were reasons that he didn't get close to anyone. They wouldn't realize how different he was. Losing his mentor had very little to do with the fact that he was a recluse. After he was done pumping the gas, he replaced the nozzle, and then hopped back onto his motorcycle. He was just about to start the bike when he caught a whiff of something in the air. He carefully sniffed the scent a little closer. "That smells like a wolf." He thought. He looked around and could just barely make out a spot of red in an alley that ran by the store. He started his bike and rode over to the alley. He got off his bike and went over to the drop of blood. He knelt down and dipped his finger in the partially dried blood. He smelled it. "Yep, definately wolf blood," he confirmed. He stood up, brushing his hands off. He stood there and thought for a minute. On a whim, he decided to follow the blood trail. Not that he cared one way or another about the wolf, but for some reason, he was curious as to find out who this blood belonged to. He followed the blood and went by scent if there was no discernable trail until finally he reached an abandond warehouse. He went to the closest door and, seeing the glass broke out, carefully opened the door and went inside.

Inside the warehouse, Tsume changed to his wolf form and looked around carefully. He stood at the entrance and sniffed the air. The warehouse was full of pallets of crates making a maze in the warehouse. A balcony ran overhead. He caught the scent of wolf in the warehouse. "I don't know what your hiding for," he called out. "I can smell you you know." he walked about thirty feet into the warehouse when he hears a noise from behind. He ducked and scurried to the side just as a white form sailed by him. Tsume got into a defensive position and got ready for a fight when he saw the white wolf standing before him. The wolf was growling threatenly at him but he saw how he held his right hind leg up and saw the blood on it. Tsume stood there and scoffed.

"What was up with that?"

"What are you doing here," the white wolf demanded.

"I was going to ask you the same thing. You're going to get yourself killed if you keep that up."

"I was just trying to protect myself," he said. "Why are you running around in that form for anyway.

"What mountain did you come down from?" Tsume asked sarcastacally. "Appearantly you don't know what's been going on around here. Wolves are being hunted to extinction. Humans think we're demons or worse. If a wolf is spotted, they have orders to shoot on sight."

"Even so," the white wolf said. "You must have lost all pride as a wolf. I don't see any point of living if it means throwing away your pride."

"Well then," Tsume drawled. "Answer me this. What good is all that pride going to do you when your dead?"

Kiba looked at him with a shocked look on his face. He had never thought of it like that before. he was just about to answer when he saw moonlight reflecting off of something on the balcony behind Tsume. He gave a closer look. The light was reflecting off of...glass? No, not glass but a lens attached to a scope on a rifle. Someone was drawing a bead down on them.

"What the hell are yo...

"Sniper!" he yelled as he launched himself at Tsume, ramming into him and knocking him to the floor. Just as he hit him, a shot went off, hitting the concrete floor where Tsume was standing. He got quickly back to his feet as the white wolf struggled back up, hindered by his injured leg.

"Get out of here," Kiba yelled. I'll draw his fire!

"Your crazy," Tsume yelled, but his words fell on deaf ears

Kiba took off in the other direction, heading deeper into the warehouse. a shot went off again in his direction. As soon as he heard the explosion from the gun, he cut sharp right, the bullet just missing him. He kept going as more shots were fired.

Tsume watched as the wolf ran through the warehouse, dodging shots as he went. "He's crazy," he thought. Tsume shifted human, then jumped up to the balcony and landed softly on his feet. He was hoping to take the man out but just as he landed, a black dog with piercing blue eyes lept at him, snarling, fangs bared. Tsume threw up his arm to protect his neck. The dogs fangs sank into his arm and it's momentum carried it and Tsume over the balcony. They both hit the floor hard. The dog gave a yelp of pain and laid still. Tsume struggle his way to his feet still hearing shots ringing out across the warehouse. He shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs. He looked in the direction the wolf had gone and didn't see him. He grimaced in pain, holding his arm. He had several cuts in his forearm, a couple very deep, the blood running from the wounds like a river. He ran back outside to his bike, hoping to head the white wolf off on the other side of the warehouse. He was going to give him a ride to safety, but when he got to the other side of the warehouse, he saw no sight of the wolf. Only a trail of blood.

Quent took one final shot before the wolf disappeared out of sight on the other side of the warehouse. He noticed for the first time Blue laying on the floor below.

"Blue." He ran to the end of the balcony looking around for a way down. He saw an extendable ladder at the end of it. He kicked the ladder and it dropped to the ground. He scurried down the ladder as fast as he could, breathing heavily, and ran over to Blue.

"Blue," he choked out. He took a hand and gently rubbed the fur on her head. She weakly raised her head and looked up at him, then laid it back on the floor with a wimper of pain. He breathed a sigh of relief to see that she was still alive. He ran outside and looked around. He saw Tsume at the end of the warehouse on his motorcycle, looking past the warehouse. He cocked the gun and took aim. Tsume looked over his shoulder at the sound and, noticing Quent Yaiden, peeled away on his motorcycle, past the warehouse, and out of sight. He cursed as he failed to kill the white one, but now the gray one had got away. He took his flask out of his pocket, took a sip of the whisky inside, then put it away. He went in to check on Blue. As soon as she was able, he was going to begin the hunt again.

"I gotta get back to the house and get this truck fixed. In the meantime, I want you to get some groceries from the market and meet me back at the house. Oh, and while you're at it, please drop Mrs. Thomas's watch off, I just finished it up last night." Leara took the watch and took the grocery list from here father and looked up at him.

"No problem Daddy," she said. "I won't be too long."

"Alright," he said. "And Leara, please be careful."

"I will Daddy," she said. Leara gave her dad a hug and then stepped back. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a boy walking up to them with reddish brown hair that fell down to his shoulders and golden brown eyes. He was wearing a red zip up shirt, green cargo pants and black boots. On his right arm, he wore four silver bracelets. He was a couple of years older then Leara, putting him at about fourteen years of age.

"Well look who's here to keep you company," her father said smiling. "How you doing Toboe.

"I'm well sir, and you?"

"Doing just fine. Got a lot to do today." He fixes his daughter with a stern look. "Now Leara, remember to be home before nightfall, okay.

"I will Daddy," she said.

"Ok." He said. "Take good care of my daughter Toboe," he said, looking at the red head boy.

"I will sir, I promise," he said with a smile.

"Alright then, you two run off and have fun. See you later Leara, I love you sweety," he said as he got back into his truck.

"I love you too daddy, bye," she said waving. Her father waved back as he drove off, leaving the two of them alone.

"So, what does he have you doing today?" Toboe asked.

"I got to return Mrs. Thomas's watch to her and get groceries," she replied.

They began walking to Mrs. Thomas's house. She lived not too far from the market. As they walked, Toboe began talking excitely. "Guess what, I found this kitten today," he said, pulling the kitten out from the inside of his shirt. The kitten was solid white with big blue eyes. It gave a mew as it began batting at a string on leara's jacket.

"Oh Toboe, she's so beautiful," Leara exclaimed. "Can I hold her?"

"Sure," Toboe laughed. He carefully handed the kitten over to her. She held the kitten in her arms and the kitten burried her face in her hair and mewed again. It suddenly jumped on her shoulder, startling her and nuzzled her cheek. It laid there, purring contendly.

"I think you have a new friend." Toboe laughed.

Leara giggled and said, "Yeah, I guess so.

"Do you want to keep her?", Toboe asked.

"Oh, Toboe, I couldn't take her from you." she exclaimed. She tried to hand the kitten back to him.

"It's no problem, at least with you she will have a home," he said. "With me, she will be no better off than she was."

Leara looked at him with pure joy on her face. "Thank you so much Toboe," she exclaimed. She suddenly surprised him by giving him a big hug. Toboe laughed nervously and said, "you're welcome, Leara.

She pulled away and it warmed his heart to see the look of joy on her face. They walked for a few more minutes before Leara turned to him and asked, "What do you mean she would be no better off than she was? Your such a sweet guy, I think you would take very good care of her.

Toboe laughed nervously and said, "Well, you see, I don't actually have a home. I live on the streets." He looked over at Leara as she gave a gasp at this statement.

"Toboe, I've known you for several months now and you never told me you were homeless.

"I'm sorry I never told you, I just didn't think it was that important."

"But how do you survive, I mean it must be hard to come by food. Are you an orphan?"

"I get by alright most times, he explained. "And I've been an orphan for as far back as I can remember. I never knew who my parents were. There was this really nice lady who took me in. She was kind and sweet and took care of me."

"Where is she at now,"Leara asked curiously?

Toboe looked away sadly. "I woke up one morning and she was laying there. I tried to wake her up but she wouldn't move. She died in her sleep. I've been on the streets ever since." He looked at her and said, "It was about a week after that that I first met you at the market. I had come there looking for food."

Leara looked away, saddened that she had brought back such a painful memory. "I'm so sorry, Toboe, I didn't mean to bring that up."

He looked back at her and smiled. The part he left out was that he saw her the first day he was on his own. She had fed him some food when he was in his wolf form. But since he looked the same size as say a german shepard, she was none the wiser. "It's okay, no big deal," he said. He gave her a smile and she smiled back. By that time, they had just aproached Mrs. Thomas's house. Leara went up and knocked on the door. after a minute, someone came to the door and opened it. In the doorway stood a woman in her mid to late sixty's.

Leara handed the watch to her. "Here you go Mrs. Thomas. Daddy wanted me to return this to you. He would have been here himself, but his work truck started to give him trouble so he asked me to do it."

Mrs Thomas took the watch from her. "Why thank you very much sweety. Here you go." She handed Leara the money that she owed her father . "Oh!", she exclaimed. "I almost forgot, I'll be back in a moment." She turned around and walked back inside the house. She was gone for a moment and then came back with a foil covered pan in her hands. "This is a pie for you and your father. Let me just put it in a bag for you. "She put the pie in a bag and then handed it ot Leara. "Here you go"

"Why thank you Mrs. Thomas, that is so sweet of you."

"you are so welcome Sweetheart. My aren't you precious." Leara giggled. "Now run along. Don't want to keep your Father waiting."

"Okay, bye Mrs. Thomas." "Bye, Toboe echoed."

"You kids have a good day now." She called after them.

"We will," they said. They started walking back to the market. "Mrs. Thomas sure is sweet," Leara said.

"She sure is," Toboe said. "She reminds me a lot of Gram."

"Gram?", Leara queried."

"The lady that took care of me," Toboe explained. They continued walking back to the market, where Toboe helped her gather the groceries on the list. After they were done, Toboe said, "Well Leara, I had fun. Guess I'll see you later.

"Wait Toboe," she said suddenly. "Will you walk me home?"

"Uh, sh-shore," he said nervously.

Leara noticed his nervousness. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I mean, I would love to," he said.

"Thank you Toboe," she said. She surprised him by giving him a kiss on the cheek. She pulled away and noticed how red he turned. He giggled nervously. She turned a little red at her bold move. He looked at her and said, "come on, let's get you home."

"Okay," she said

Dusk was starting to fall as they walked. They turned down a little alley that Leara mentioned she sometimes used as a short cut to her house when they heard a voice from behind them.

"Well, Well, Well, what do we have here?" They turn around and see a shady looking man standing behind them twirling a knife in his hand. "It's a little late for little kid's to be out now isn't ." Toboe looks behind them and sees two more men standing there, blocking off their escape.

"Look, we don't want any trouble, just please leave us be." Toboe said nervously.

"Oh look at there boys. The little runt said please. Well, I guess we ought to let them go since he asked so nicely." He gave a menacing laugh. "But first, we're going to have a little fun." He laughed again as Toboe felt himself grabbed from behind.

"Let me go!" he yelled, kicking and struggling against the man that held him.

"better do as he says now boys," the leader says with a wicked gleam in his eyes. The man who grabbed Toboe suddenly threw him into the wall with force. He hit his head and fell to the ground with the wind knocked out of him. "Toboe!" Leara screamed. She tried to run to him but was quickly caught and was forced against the wall. "Let me go, Let me go," she exclaimed. She fought feebly against her captors until both her arms was pinned against the wall. She started crying in fear.

"My My, arn't you a pretty little thing," the leader said softly. The other two men laughed wickedly. "We're going to have a little fun now my boys and me. Do exactly what you're told and you might live.

They suddenly heard a growling coming from behind them. They look over and see Toboe on his hands and knees. LET HER GO!" He screamed The last part came out in a growl. Right before their eyes, he suddenly shifted into a brown and cinnamon colored wolf and attacked the man hold Leara. He jumped through the air and sank his fangs into the man's arm causing him to let to of Leara. She fell to the ground with a cry of fear. Toboe stood between the men and Leara, hackles raised, lips pulled back baring his teeth in a menacing snarl. The Leader exclaimed, "Did that runt just turn into a dog.

"It's not a dog boss, It looks like a wolf."

"Well what are you standing there for, kill it!" he yelled, holding his arm.

One of them swung a knife at Toboe, but he dodged and Gnashed his fangs at the man's hand, fangs slicing through flesh. The man screamed and fell back. He felt something strike him in the back of the head and he fell to the ground with a wimper.

"Fuck this, kill them both!" the leader screamed.

Through his foggy vision he saw one of the men, the one he hadn't injured, holding a gun on Leara. She screamed in terror. Toboe's vision grew red with the blood poaring down his face. He gave a growl and launched himself in the air past Leara and at the man. He turned and fired, the bullet barely grazing Toboe's shoulder. He landed on the man and tried to snap his fangs at his throat but was kicked in the face by the leader. He yelped as he was thrown back. He stood and growled at them as they flanked him so they could try to get the jump on him. One sliced at him and he dodged as the other one threw himself at him, wrapping his arm around his throat. Toboe gasped for breath as he was bore to the ground. He grabbed the man by the leg with his fangs biting as hard as he could. the sound of crunching bone could be heard. The man screamed and fell to the ground, clutching his broken leg. Toboe turned to face the other two but was too late. He felt a searing pain in his chest as a knife sliced into him. He fell to the ground with a yelp of pain and almost passed out. The men started kicking at him as he laid on the ground. Every kick brought a yelp of pain out of him as they beat his bruised and cut body.

"Leave him alone!" Leara screamed, throwing herself at the closest man. She threw her arms around his neck, trying to choke him. He easily threw her off and she hit the wall and fell to the ground with a moan.

"Leara," Toboe called weakly. He suddenly grew even angerier. He caught one of the men"s legs in his mouth and jerked his head, throwing the man to the ground. He weakly stood and jumped the other man, sinking his claws into his chest and bearing him to the ground. He gnashed his fangs at the mans throat and would have killed him if he wasn't kicked from behind. He fell off the man and tried to get back up again.

"Forget this, let's get outta here." the leader exclaimed. they got the man with the broken leg up and ran out of the alley. Toboe tried to get up but had lost too much blood from the knife wound in his chest. He fell back to the ground with a whimper of pain. He once again tried to get his legs under him but to no avail.

"Leara," Toboe said weakly. he crawled over to her, leaving a smear of blood in his wake. Leara looked at him with terrified eyes and tried to shrink away from him. "Get away from me," she wispered frightenedly. She started to scoot away from him. "you...you're a monster!"

"Leara, please, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you. I was just trying to protect you," He could barely whisper the words now he was so weak.

"You're a-you're a w-w-wolf." She said with a terror filled voice. "Stay away from me!" she got up and ran out of the alley.

"Leara wait," Toboe called. He tried to stand and run after her, but had lost too much blood. He fell back down to the ground once again. He tried again and finally made his way weakly to his feet and hobbled after her calling her name. His cries turned into howls as he called for her. He made it about half a mile until his strength left him. "Leara," he called again. He stumbled into an alley and fell over. He tried ot get up but his legs just would not hold him. He fell again. Spots started swimming in front of his vision. He shook his head, trying to clear the dancing spots in front of his eyes. "Leara," he whispered again. He closed his eyes and darkness overcame him.

Leara continued running until she ran out of breath. She leaned against the wall of a storefront, trying to get her breath back. "He's a wolf." That thought kept going through her head. "He's a wolf, a demon, a vicious beast. I can't believe I never knew. She started walking home again, body shaking uncontrollably in terror. She heard the howls from Toboe as she walked. Tears were streaming down her face. She thought back on the boy she had gotten to know over the last three months. His kind-hearted nature, his sweet innocence, the way he gave the kitten to her so the kitten would have a warm place to sleep at night.

"This isn't right," she thought. "Wolf or not, he risked his life for me." "No Leara, don't be stupid, he's a vicious beast." "Would a vicious beast protect you and save you from three men?" She shook her head trying to clear her thoughts, the argument she was having with herself leaving her confused. Her conscience at war with here primal instincts for survival. Suddenly, as she thought about it, she felt guilty leaving him like that. He was out there, injured and scared, and she ran from him. Despite being a wolf, he was still her friend. Her mind made up, she started running back in the direction she came from, calling his name.

"Toboe." No answer. She kept running and calling his name until she saw a vehicle pull up.

"Leara," her father called. "What are you doing, you were supposed to be home an hour ago. and where's the groceries?"

"Daddy. Toboe is hurt. These men attacted us and he protected me but now he's hurt. He needs our help."

"Alright, get in the truck, we'll go find him."

She gratefully jumped into the truck and they headed out to find him.

"There's a flashlight in the glove box," her father said. "Get it and start shining the beam down alleys. I'll do the same over here.

"Okay daddy." she opened the glove box and grabbed the light. "Daddy, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah sweety," he looked over at her.

"Can you keep something between you and me, and you have to promise to still help Toboe no matter what I tell you."

"Okay sweety, what is it?".

"Toboe, Toboe is a...a...

"A what sweety?"

"Well...he's a wolf."

Her father suddenly stopped the truck and Leara was glad she was wearing her seatbelt.

"He's a what!" he exclained,

"Daddy, please, we have to find him. he saved my life. He risked his life for me and now he's hurt. He needs us. Please."

"Leara, are you crazy. He's a wolf for crying out loud. You know that anyone caught with a wolf will be imprisioned or worse. No, we're going home this instant

Leara began to cry, tears rolling down her porcellin cheaks. "Please daddy, he saved my life. He's always been a good friend to me. I don't care what he is, he's hurt and probably dying and he got hurt protecting me. You owe him."

"I don't owe him nothing. Wolves are nothing but savage beasts. They will kill you without a thought."

"But he didn't kill me daddy. He protected me. Please help him."

Her father looked at her in disbelief for a moment and then started driving again. "Okay, he said. "We'll help him."

"Thanks Daddy.

"Yeah sure. I'm probably gonna regret this."

They drove for a while longer and kept calling Toboe's name and shining the beams of their flashlights down alley's until suddenly, Leara saw something in an alley across from her.

"Daddy, stop the truck," Leara screamed. He did and she jumped out. She ran over to the alley with her dad right behind her. Sure enough, Toboe was laying unconscience in the alley, a pool of blood had formed under him

"Toboe," she cried. she laid her hand on his side and was relieved to feel a heart beat. He was barely breathing.

Here Dad reached for him. "Okay, let's get him in the truck. We don't have much time. He's lost too much blood."

Her dad grabbed Toboe and carefully caried him to the truck and laid him gently in the back seat. Leara was about to climb back inside when she heard a pathetic mew behind her. She looked and saw the kitten. He must have ran out of her jacket during the confusion of the fighting.

"Come here girl," she said, grateful that the kitten was okay. The kitten ran up to her and started rubbing against her legs. She picked her up and got in the truck in the backseat beside Toboe She laid his head in her lap and began softly stroking the fur on his head and side. The kitten was rubbing her heas against Toboe's mewing pathetically.

"What do you have there," her father asked, indicating the kitten.

Leara sniffed back tears as she said, " It's a kitten. Toboe found her in a cardboard box. He gave her to me so she would have someplace warm to stay and food to eat. Can we keep her?"

Her father looked forward again, concentrating on his driving. "Well, that definately convinces me that he's not vicious or evil. Of course we can keep her." Her father looked at her in the rearview mirror. "How's he doing?"

"Not good, his breathing's getting shallow and it feels like his heartbeat is slowing down."

Her father looked forward again. "Damn it, not good. We're almost home. We'll do the best we can for him. And Leara...

"Yes daddy," she replied.

"I'm sorry about what I said about him. I was just a little freaked out, that's all"

"It's okay Daddy, I freaked out as well. But I know he would never hurt me. I just want him to be alright."

"He will be sweety. We'll do all we can for him." 'Please don't die on me kid.' he thought. He put his foot down a little heavier on the gas pedal and rushed to the house as fast as he could.


	2. Chapter 2

WR chapter 2

Images started flashing through his head like a video recorder set on super sonic speed. He couldn't make sense of it. It was all causing him to have a really bad headache. His head felt like it was going to split in two. He screamed in agony at the images all trying to grab his attention at the same time. The only thing that stood out was blood, death, misery, the pained look on their faces. The whispered words, "Why, why have you betrayed your own race?" He saw more pain and death caused by...him...another wolf?..it was too hard to make out all of these images. These images of wolves being slaughtered. It's like all his memories came flooding back to him all at once, a thousand or even a million different memories hitting him all at once in a split second. Just when he tried to start making sense of them, they were gone, along with his headache. He pondered the images and tried to recall them to mind again but kept coming up with nothing. He than realized something. He could remember nothing whatsoever before now. It was all a blank. He slowly opened his eyes, and immediately shut them again, the sunlight blazed down on his sore eyes. He opened his eyes again, blinking furiously, trying to let his eyes get adjusted to the light. he slowly made his way to his feet, sporting a yellow hoody. He had tousled, light brown hair and brownish gold eyes. He wore light grey sweatpants and black sneakers. His face was of a cheerful countenance. He dusted himself off and slowly looked around. He was standing in the middle of a park in a city, a light rain coming down. There, he noticed on the ground at his feet was several pieces of what looked like a shattered metal collar.

He put his hands in his hoody pockets and starting walking through the park. He was only walking for a few minutes when suddenly, ggrrrrrr...He stopped and looked around for whoever or whatever had made that noise. It came again. Grrrrrr...he looked down and then realized it was his own stomach. He put his hand on his stomach with a sheepish chuckle and said, "hang in there. I'll get you some food in a minute. He put his hands lazily behind his head and continued walking, following his nose to a hotdog stand.

The truck came screeching to a halt. Leara's dad jumped out of the truck and opened the back door.

"Alright," her dad said. "Easy and gentle, we don't want to jostle him around too much. Do you think you can help me carry him?"

Leara swallowed and nodded, " I think I can do it Daddy.

"Good, now run along into the house and get me the blue blanket from the laundry room closet. We are going to have to use that as a stretcher of sorts."

Leara nodded and ran off into the house. A moment later, she was back with the blanket. "Alright," her dad said. "Help me lift him. They slowly lifted his front side and started to slide the blanket under him. as they laid him down, a whine escaped his throat and his eyes started to flutter open.

"Toboe," Leara looked down into those honey eyes of his. He just stared at nothing, eyes glassed over in pain. If it wasn't for the steady rise and fall of his chest, Leara would have thought him dead. Toboe gave another pained whine and his eyes fluttered closed again. Then her dad took the two corners of the blanket and said, "I am going to drag him out a little ways. Get out the other side and come around the truck." Leara did as she was told. By the time she got around the truck, her Father had pulled Toboe almost out of it.

"Now Leara," her father said, "grab the two corners like I'm doing. She did as was told. "Now," her Father continued, "Gently lift him. Test the weight first, if you don't think you can do it, then let me know." She tested the weight.

"I think I can handle it." She said.

"Okay. If you need a break, let me know. Now on three. Leara took a firm hold. "one...two...three!

They lifted Toboe out of the truck and gently carried him to the house. They got him inside and laid him down on the floor, and just in time too because Leara collapsed on the floor, chest heaving. Her Dad looked at her with a worried expression. "Are you alright Leara?"

She nodded her head as she got her breathing under control.

"Good, now run along and get me my medical supplies please." She did as she was told and promply came back with the needed supplies.

"Alright, now help me hold him. He may still be unconscious but he can still feel pain."

For the next hour, they sowed up the knife wound in his chest, cleaned the wounds, and checked his body all over to make sure he didn't have any internal damage. other than some severally broken ribs on his right side and the cut on his head, there was no other damage.

"What do we do now?" Leara asked quietly, petting Toboe's head.

"Now we wait, and hope for the best." he answered.

* * *

Kiba finally found himself in the park in the middle of town. He had been walking all day in the shadows of the alleys, searching for the smell of the lunar flower and trying to stay out of sight. Now, all he wanted to do is rest. He made his way into the woods and, finding a comfortable spot, laid down with his head on his paws, being mindful of his injured hind leg. He closed his eyes, trying to will himself to sleep. He, however, couldn't calm his racing thoughts. He thought back over how far he has come from. It had been a very difficult journey. He had been traveling for so long and has been through so much. He could still smell the lunar flower here stronger than anywhere he's been before. And there is also that voice. That voice that keeps calling to him. "Come Kiba . This one promised you to see you in the next world. This one promised you a second chance. 'This one promised you paradise. Please, don't give up. Just when all seems lost is when you are at your strongest." Kiba shook his head and pelt, and settled back down. The last time the voice had spoke that to him was a weak ago, when he had been traveling through a mighty blizzard with no shelter in sight. He hasn't heard the voice since and was beginning to wander if his goal would ever be reached or if he had just been crazy all these years. But there was no mistaking the smell of lunar flower right here in this decrepit city.

Kiba opened his eyes and stood up, stretching and shaking the last of the fatigue from him. He had been laying there for several hours but sleep would not come to him. He began pacing, limping around, trying to come up with his next plan of action. The only thing there was to really do was to keep going. Keep following the scent of lunar flower. He laid down again and laid his head on his paws. A few more hours. Sleep may not come, but he needed to rest. He closed his eyes. They snapped open again a few minutes later. Kiba stood up, hackles raised, a low growl emitting from his throat.

What startled him was a noise of a twig snapping behind him. He was so startled that he was about to lunge at whoever had snuck up on him before realizing it. Then he caught the smell. The smell of lunar flower. It didn't make any sense, the smell of lunar flower was coming closer. Kiba stood his ground and waited. Soon, a shadow was seen moving through the trees. The figure shifted closer and was suddenly bathed in moonlight. A pink haired girl with red eyes with pink irises wearing a white/blue tinted body suit. She made her way over to Kiba with a smile of utmost joy on her face. Kiba backed up a couple of steps, still growling low. The girl stopped five feet from where Kiba was standing and squatted down.

"This one knows you do not remember this one Kiba. But this one is glad to see you again. This one has missed you so much. This one promises not to fail you again.

Kiba's defensive stance relaxes and his lip lowers. He stares at this mysterious girl with confusion and wonderment. She said she was glad to see him again and promised not to fail him again. What did she mean by that? He knows he had never seen this creature in his life and yet felt as if he had known her forever.

"I don't understand what you're talking about. How do you know me and what do you mean fail me again. I don't even know you." It was then that he recognized her voice. It was the same one from his dreams and visions. The girl held her hands out and smiled as she looked at him lovingly with her sightless eyes. Kiba suddenly had a growing sense of peace and calm in the presence of this creature. She was a delicate thing, as delicate and fragile as the flowers for which she smells of. Kiba slowly walked forward and brushed his nose against her hand. It was then that he knew. This girl is linked to his quest for paradise. He knew that she was drawn to him just like he was drawn to her. It was then that the name came to him from out of nowhere, like he had known it all his life. "Cheza." Finally feeling at peace for the first time in a long time, he laid his head on her shoulder and she hugged him with the utmost joy. They stayed like that for several minutes until she started to sing. It was a haunting melody as well as a calming one

"Shailoh shailoh, yatreet ka

Shailoh shna...otvitka.

She continued singing for the next few minutes and as she did, Kiba was suddenly feeling very sleepy. He slowly laid down until his head rested on her lap and he slowly closed his eyes giving in to slumber, and for the first time, was not plagued by nightmares of death and fire.

* * *

The buck deer gave a bellow of pain and terror as ivory fangs pierced it's throat, crushing it's windpipe, cutting off oxygen and slicing it's jugular. The white maw of the she-wolf held her pray down until it stopped kicking and struggling. As soon as it laid still for the final time, she began to feast. She ripped open the belly and began feasting on the entrails in there. A few minutes later, she was gorged and, after ripping off several choice pieces from the carcass, carried the meat back to the cave she was using for shelter. She stowed them into a corner and laid down. She started cleaning the blood off her paws and her muzzle as she thought about the last week she had been traveling. She just up and one day had the urge to start traveling south without rhyme or reason. Then, just last night, she, for no reason, turned west. It didn't make any sense. It is almost like she was being drawn to something, like an itch in the back of her mind and in her soul. She looked over her white pelt to see if she missed any spots. She was a beautiful, if very unique wolf. She had fur as white as snow. starting halfway up her back legs was a black, tribal looking marking that traveled up her hind legs, both leg markings blending into one big one on her back that went halfway down her flanks. Her front legs had similar markings going up to meet the one on her back, making it look like she had a full body tattoo. Her eyes were also very unique. A mixture of the colors of the moon. Lunar color with silver flecks in them. These eyes now stared out of the cave at the moon. In the process of pondering her journey based on instinct, she had to ponder her dreams as well. Most were of the fire that claimed her pack, but some were of a white wolf. She couldn't stop thinking about this wolf. Every time she envisioned him she saw him standing on a snowy peak with the snow capped mountains behind him. The wind would slowly ruffle his fur. His eyes held the look of nobility and strength as well as an iron will and determination. He seemed to be beckoning her with those eyes. What bothered her so much about him is that, although she has never seen him before, she keeps having dreams about him and he seems very familiar to her, like they have met in the past. She also couldn't get past the tingly feeling that went through her body and mind every time she dreamed about him, almost like they were connected somehow. She laid down and tried to get to sleep Tomorrow was going to be a long day of travel. She put her confusing thoughts to the side for the time being and closed her eyes, drifting into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Come back here you thieving bastard." The boy in the yellow hoodie continued running up and down alleys and across streets until the angry voice faded into the background and could no longer be heard, he snickered as he pulled a hotdog out of his pocket and started eating. After he had practically swallowed that hotdog whole, he pulled his second hotdog out of his pocket and ate that one too. He was walking with no direction in mind and so wasn't surprised that he wound up back at the park. He went to an area where a bunch of old bushes were and, after walking behind the bushes where it was secluded, changed into his true form, a husky, brown wolf with calm yellow eyes, and curled up, wrapping his tail around him and in front of his nose. Suddenly, he heard the sound of singing. He raised his head up in surprise and listened. He wanted to find wherever that beautiful song was coming from but before he knew it, he grew sleepy and was out like a light.

* * *

Tsume sat on the sofa with a beer in his hand. There were several cans lying around as a testament to the early start he had got on drinking. All he could replay over and over in his mind was that white wolf he had met earlier. Is he alive? did he escape from that wolf hunter? 'And most important of all, why do I even give a shit.' He killed his sixth beer and went to the fridge to get another one. He returned to the sofa, cracking the tab on his beer and took a swallow. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. The one thing he just couldn't get out of his mind is the fact that he was about to kick that mouthy bastard's ass when the white wolf instead saved his ass from a bullet. "It's a dog eat dog world. Only the strong survive. You gotta look out for number one. That's how I've always gotten through life. And yet, that crazy ass excuse of a wolf risked his neck for me." Tsume shook his head as he took another swallow from his beer. When he was finished drinking it, he crushed the can and dropped it on the floor. He was about to grab another one when he started feeling really tired. He put his head in his hands and shook his head, trying to clear it. It was then that he noticed the singing. It was a beautiful song but all it did was irritate him as he was trying to stay awake. It was all to no avail though as he fell into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

The bright morning light burned into Leara's eyes when she woke up. She groaned and flung her arm over her eyes, cursing the light. She sat up so the sunlight wasn't directly on her and gave a huge yawn while stretching. She heard a whimper and went immediately into the living room to see that Toboe was twitching in his sleep. He let out another whimper as he shifted his position in his sleep. Leara went to his side and knelt down before him. She gently rubbed his head trying to calm him down. Toboe finally settled down and with a soft tink of his bangles, he settled into a more restful sleep. She checked the wound in his chest to make sure it hadn't gotten any worse. As the last of the bandages fell away, she gasped with a sharp intake of breath. the skin around the raw, jagged wound was red and felt hot to the touch when she checked it. "That's not good," she murmured. She looked at his ribs, frowning when she noticed how uneven they were. They looked worse then last night. The ragged wheezing of his breaths indicated possible internal damage. She felt her eyes start to get blurry and a tear rolled down her cheek. She tried to hold back the tears but she couldn't. Her best friend was severely injured because he was saving her. And then to top it all off, she got terrified of him and ran, leaving him injured and bleeding in some nasty alleyway. She couldn't shake the grief of what happened as well as the grief of her own guilt. She gave him one final pat on the head and when she did, a small whine escaped him and he nuzzled his head into her hand. Before she knew it, he had shifted his body while still sleeping and put his head in her lap. He gave a contented sigh and was suddenly deep asleep again. Even the wheezing and hitching was gone from his breathing. She sat there in shock for a moment, then started gently rubbing his head again.

"Thank you Toboe," she whispered. "Thank you for saving me from those men. I'd be dead or worse if it wasn't for you. And I'm also sorry I ran away from you. I hope you can understand how much that freaked me out and why I reacted the way I did. It still wasn't right though and I'm truly sorry. I hope I came back to you in time and I hope you can forgive me. Please be alright Toboe. Please don't die." She started to cry again and tried to keep it quiet so as not to disturb him. She stayed there for a long time, content to continue petting him as the tears rolled down her face, falling into his soft fur.

* * *

Kiba slowly opened his eyes. He raised his head, taking in the surroundings around him. He saw he was surrounded by trees and the sound of a city assaulted his ears. He looked around, twitching his ears here and there to take in the sounds around him. 'Was that a dream?' He thought to himself. 'Did I really find the flower maiden?' He looked around him and, sure enough, there snuggled into his side was the pink haired girl from the night before. "Cheza," he whispered. He shook his head with a start. He knew that her name was Cheza. He also noticed that his leg was no longer hurting him. He glanced at it. It had been healed. Okay. How did she do that?

Cheza opened her eyes. She looked up at Kiba and a big smile lit up her innocent face.

"This one is so happy to see you again Kiba. This one has been waiting for a very long time for you. This one is so happy that you have arrived. But we must go now. There is a young one that needs our help. He is hurt and this one can feel his pain and confusion. This one wanted to go to him last night but this one had to wait for you. You was so close so this one couldn't leave. But we must leave now and go help this young wolf.

"I don't understand," Kiba said. "I don't even know where to find this wolf.

Cheza looked up at the rising sun for a moment. She then turned to Kiba and said, ''He is not very far. This one feels him close. Just follow your nose and it will lead us to him."

Kiba nodded and then stood up, Stretching his back and then his legs as he let out a big wolfish yawn causing his tongue to loll out of his mouth as he did so. He shook himself and then turned to Cheza.

"Okay, let's go."

Cheza nodded and they began to walk.

"Kiba?"

"Yes Cheza."

"Shouldn't you shift into your human form? If you walk around in your true form, it could be very dangerous."

Kiba stopped and regarded her with a curious expression. Next thing you know, there is no longer a white wolf standing there, but a boy in his late teens, His unkempt brown hair blowing across his face in the slight breeze that rustled through the trees. He was wearing a dark gray denim jacket, a white shirt under that, and dark blue jeans and black sneakers.

"I'm not happy about this but I'll do it for now," He muttered.

"Thank you Kiba." Cheza smiled at him and he felt his heart flutter. He smiled down at the flower maiden and they continued walking.

* * *

Hige awoke with a yawn. He let out a big stretch as he did. He had the most terrific dream last night. There was a beautiful field of flowers and he was surrounded by beautiful she wolves, all vying for his attention. He was also surrounded by all the food he could eat. Yes, it was the best dream ever. The sound of a twig snapping broke him from his reverie. He peaked out of the bushes and saw a brown haired teen with intense blue eyes and a pink haired girl in what looked to be a white body suit and pink boots walk past him. He looked a bit closer and saw the teen for what he really was, a white wolf with piercing gold eyes. It looked like he could look right into your soul. And the most wonderful flowery scent ever was coming from the pink haired girl. It was a scent that made him feel calm and relaxed, as if he could bask in the scent for the rest of his life.

He waited until they were a good distance away from him and then, shifting into his human form, began to follow the two out of the park.

* * *

"Another round!" The bartender sighed as he served Quent Yaiden his sixth round of liquor. The man was becoming increasingly ineberated. Nevertheless, he served him another round. Quent grabbed the glass and knocked it back, slamming the glass on the bar with a satisfied thud.

"Another."

"Mr. Yaiden, don't you think you've had enough?"

"Am I slurring my words? Do I look more than just a little bit buzzed? I didn't think so. Now, do your job and get me another drink. Just because you boys can't hold your liquor doesn't mean that I can't.

The bartender just shook his head and poured him another drink. Quent drank this one down as well, although a little bit slower this time. Suddenly, the sounds of growls and barks was heard outside. Quent turned his head towards the commotion, not happy that something had interrupted his drinking. When he realized it was his dog named Blue, he grabbed his rifle from it's holster and ran out the door.

As he came crashing outside, Blue was straining against her leash, trying to bolt down an alleyway.

"What is it girl? was it one of those damn wolves?

Blue continued barking and growling down the alley. Quent ran down the alley. When he came to the end and onto the sidewalk beside the road, he swiveled his gun left and right. He did a double take and noticed a brown haired kid about seventeen or so with wild blue eyes and a girl with pink hair walking down the sidewalk. Quent squinted his eyes and as his vision blurred, he noticed the boys image shimmer and in his place was a white wolf. It was the same wolf from yesterday, the one he had been tracking. He slowly raised his rifle and aimed at the wolf. "I got you now you murdering bastard." His fingered slowly started to squeeze the trigger.

* * *

Kiba kept walking, not even noticing the barking dog, and took comfort in Cheza's presence. He felt like that everything was right with the world just being with her. Her calming influence was almost like a drug. As they continued to walk, Cheza's voice came to his ears again.

"This one can feel his pain ever more stronger now. This one believes his pain has diminished some but not his confusion. This one is having trouble keeping a connection with the injured wolf though because he is unconscious."

"Don't worry Cheza. I can smell his blood as well as his scent. We must be close now." Kiba looked at cheza and was about to say more when he caught a scent in the air. A scent of a wolf as well as something else, something familiar. A scent that brought fear as well as anger to him. He stopped and turned to look behind him when a gun shot rang out. He felt a searing pain hit his chest near his right shoulder and close to his neck. He fell backwards with a high pitched yelp of pain and landed on the sidewalk. Losing control because of the pain, he shifted back into his true form.

"KIBA!" Cheza's agonized cry tore through the air as she dropped to her knees beside the wounded wolf. She buried her face into his pelt and cried tears of anguish. Kiba's breathing was shallow and he was having trouble getting enough oxygen into his lungs. It was then that he realized that he might have a collapsed lung. He raised his head up and saw the man from yesterday advancing on him as he cocked his gun, preparing to finish him off.

"NO!" Cheza screamed. She hugged Kiba closer to her. Kiba tried to get up but fell weakly to the ground again. He saw the man advancing with a malicious grin on his face as he took aim again.

* * *

Hige was continuing to follow the strange wolf's scent and was humming happily to himself. He always had a love for something interesting and right now, a strange wolf and a girl who smelled like flowers was the most interesting thing to happen in this city in a long time. He thought long and hard about side tracking long enough to get some food because he was hungry, but decided against it. He didn't want to lose the scent of the strange wolf and the flower smelling girl. He jerked his head up when he heard a gunshot go off accompanied by a yelp of pain. His sensitive nose picked up the smell of wolfs blood as it was spilled. Then he heard the agonizing scream.

Hige picked up his pace before he knew what he was doing. As he started running as fast as he could to the wolf, he started questioning himself. 'Why am I rushing into possible danger to help this strange wolf? Hige, you are an idiot' Regardless, he kept up his pace until he came upon a horrifying scene. A man in front of him was holding a gun on the white wolf. The Pink haired girl was hugging the wolf and crying. The wolf tried to get up but fell down again. Blood was pooling around him.

Hige took all of this in in a split second. As he got closer, he leapt into the air and soared towards the man. He shifted in mid air. and came down on the man's back. He grunted as he was thrown to the ground, the gun flying out of his hands. Hige quickly grabbed the gun in his fangs and threw it as far as he could away. He then turned towards the wolf and the girl. The wolf was looking at him warily. The pink haired girl was also looking at him. Hige trotted over to them and rested his side against the white wolf's injured side.

"Come on, we have to hurry before police and soldiers show up," He said. He helped Kiba up to his feet and with the pink haired girl in tow, they hurried down an alley, Hige bearing most of Kiba's weight. Hige heard the man cussing behind him and chanced a look over his shoulder. The man had pulled a hand gun and was taking aim.

"Shit," Hige muttered. He looked around frantically and saw an alley coming up on the left. He pushed the wolf and girl down the alley just as several shots sounded in the air. Hige yelped as a bullet graized his hind leg and one buried itself next to one of his shoulder blades, barely missing his spine. He fell to the ground in pain He got up and kept running, hoping the man would stay focused on him and not the others. Sure enough, the man continued following him, continuing to shoot his gun.

"This shit's getting really old," Hige snarled. He kept running, darting down alleys and streets. His speed was hampered, however, by his wounds so the man was able to keep pace with him. He looked over his shoulder again and noticed the man reloading. He darted down another alley and the man followed. He was aiming at him again just as a white blur dove past him from the other side of the alley. Hige looked over his shoulder as the white wolf knocked the man down.

"Jump," he yelled. They jumped from one side of the alley to the other bouncing off of buildings. When they got to the roof, several more gun shots hit near them, but none finding they're mark. The wolves continued to jump from roof top to roof top until they came to one particular building. as soon as they landed on the roof, Kiba collapsed in pain and exhaustion. Hige was on the verge of collapse as well, but went over to the white wolf and checked on his wound.

The bullet had passed completely through. Hige was glad that it wasn't still in him because that would make the white wolf's healing process slower.

"Now, don't hate me for this," Hige said, "but your wound needs cleaned before it gets infected." He walked over to the white wolf and started gently licking the wound in his chest. He growled lowly in his throat but didn't pull away. Hige continued to gently clean his wound until it stopped bleeding. Just then, Cheza came from around an entryway and came over to them. She held a look of profound sadness on her face.

"Lucky for you the bullet passed clean through," Hige told him. "It should heal alright now."

The white wolf looked at him. "What about you. You got one lodged into your back. That needs to come out before it causes lead poisioning." Kiba gave a grimace of pain as he shifted his position to look up at the sandy colored wolf. "What is your name anyway?"

"Oh, sorry. Forgot to introduce myself. The name's Hige. What's yours.

"Kiba, and this is Cheza, the flower maiden." Kiba tried to get up again but was too weak. Cheza came over to him and placed her hand on his chest. Her hand started glowing with a bluish white light, almost like the color of the moon, and the wound on Kiba's chest started flowing together again. as soon as the wound was no longer bleeding, Cheza took her hand away. When she did this, Kiba felt an energy flow through him and he felt stronger. He tried to get up again and found he was no longer weak.

Kiba and Hige looked at Cheza with awe. "Wow, that was amazing," Hige said. "How did you do that?"

"This one is a flower maiden. This one can help wolves in different ways."

"Wow, that's unbelievable," Hige exclaimed. "you think you could do that to me?"

"This one would love to, but the bullet needs to come out first or otherwise, you will get lead poisoning."

"This is going to hurt like hell but here it goes." Hige laid down on his stomache. "Kiba, would you like to do the honors?"

"Hige, are you crazy? We got no way to numb you from the pain or any way to get the bullet out of you."

"Use your claws to get the bullet out of me and don't worry about the pain. I can take it, I hope."

Kiba sighed and,shifting to his human form, went over to Hige. He shifted claws out of his hands and, taking his belt out of his jeans, folded it over on itself and then folding it one more time. He then put it in front of hige.

"Here, bite down on this to help with the pain."

Hige looked at the belt distrustfully for a moment and then put it in his mouth.

"Alright, here goes," said Kiba. He stuck his claws down through the hole in Hige's back. A whine escaped his lips which caused Cheza to shudder. She went over to Hige who was biting down on Kiba's belt so hard, his fangs had went though it, and started to pet his head to comfort him. He visibly relaxed and closed his eyes in contentment at her ministrations. After another couple of minutes, Kiba had pulled the bullet out. Hige was whimpering in pain and Cheza put her hand over the wound and healed it. She was running out of energy. She also healed the wound on his leg and then sat back, exhausted.

Kiba glanced over and saw Cheza's exhaustion. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"This one will be fine. She just needs to rest and find some water."

Hige came up to Kiba, bringing him the pieces of what was left of his belt. "Sorry about the belt."

"That's okay, I didn't need it anyway, How are you feeling now?" Kiba asked.

"I feel great," Hige exclaimed. " I don't know what she did, but I feel better than ever. Hey, I just thought of something, let's go back to the park. There is a fountain there where Cheza can get some water."

"This one will be fine. This one would really like to find that injuried wolf so she can help him."

Kiba and Hige looked at each other. In unspoken agreement, they got up. Kiba grabbed Cheza's hand.

"Lead the way," Hige said. Together, the three of them jumped off the building and headed into the city in search of the wounded wolf.


	3. Chapter 3

**(AN): I just realized that I hadn't been doing disclaimers. No I don't own wolf's rain. Only this story and oc's that appear.**

 **You may notice some characters are ooc. I blame the rebirth and new experiences in life. Please let me know if you like it. Tsume especially will be ooc. Just wanted to change it up a bit.**

 **Please review.**

Cold. Blinding, blistering, fridged cold. That was all he knew. His eyes had just barely opened and all he saw around him was the white expanse of a snowy wasteland. He was being carried by the scruff of his neck. Whoever was caring him was staggering more so than walking. He could smell the strong iron coppery smell of blood in the air. He looked down from where he was being carried and could see drops of red hitting the snow. The one carrying him stumbled and he went sailing through the air. He hit the snow with a yelp and shook his head to get the snow off. He hadn't even started walking yet but knew the one who he was with was hurt. He could sense it from them even if he didn't understand such things yet. He tried to stand and just fell over again. He whimpered in frustration and tried again and again he fell over. This went on for a while. Finally with one last frustrated whimper, he put his legs under him and shakily found his way to his feet. He stood there, amazed at his feat, and put a little paw out in front of him. He put another paw out and fell on his face. He stood up again and put a paw out again. He tried a hind leg this time. Then a front paw, then a hind paw. Before he knew it, he was walking. He yipped and made his way over to the other wolf who was laying in the snow, panting erratically. The snow around the brown and white form was stained red. He whimpered again and slowly wobbled his way over on shaky legs. When he finally got to the wolf, he started liking it's muzzle. The wolf's eyes shot open, sky blue eyes turning to him.

* * *

Toboe's eyes shot open with a start. His head involuntarily shot up as he came out of his strange dream. He let out a whimper of pain as he disturbed the wound on his chest. He looked around, hoping he didn't disturbed anyone. He then noticed Leara curled up into a ball, asleep on the floor beside him.

'What's going on here. Last I remember, I had passed out in an alley.'

He looked over at leara again and remembered what happened. The fight with those creeps in the alley. Him getting injured. Leara getting scared of him and running. Running after her and losing consciousness. He didn't understand where he was. He started getting light headed and his vision was swimming to the point that he thought he was going to be sick so he laid his head back down and closed his eyes until the feeling passed. once he was out of throwing up danger, he opened his eyes again and stared at Leara, wondering if it was her home he was in. None of it made any sense. Why would she be sleeping near him if she was terrified of him? He turned his thoughts away from that puzzle to concentrate on another one. That strange dream. Who was the blue eyed wolf in his dream? Was that puppy him when he was younger? None of it made any sense. He found a sense of familiarity with that brown and white wolf in his dream but he couldn't remember who it was. He squeezed his eyes shut as another wave of nausea came over him and his head was throbbing fiercely.

'Wonder if I got a concussion from that hard knock to the head?'

He closed his eyes again and tried to get some rest. Wherever he was, he was in good hands if Leara was here and was comfortable enough to sleep. He just wish he knew what was going on.

* * *

Tsume opened his eyes and then immediately shut them, cursing. His head was throbbing from last night's indulgence and the sun shining right into his eyes wasn't helping nothing. "That's the last time I drink lite beer." He got up, walked into the kitchen, and started brewing some coffee. He hated the stuff but it helped get over a hang over. When the coffee was done brewing he poured him a cup and started sipping it, making a face as the hot bitter liquid scalded his tongue. He finally finished it several minutes later and, putting the dish in the sink, stripped off his clothes to take a shower. When he was done bathing, he stood in front of the mirror, fingering the scar on his chest. He closed his eyes as memories of that day came back to haunt him once again.

After several minutes he said, "screw this," and went to get dressed. He put on a gray tank top, black denim pants, and biker boots. He topped it off with black leather fingerless riding gloves, Black riding shades, and a black leather jacket with a gray wolf on the back howling at the moon. It had the words "Lone WolF" above the picture and "RiderZ" below the picture. The name Claw was emblazoned on the left chest part of the jacket. He left his apartment, went to his custom Harley chopper, and straddled it. He started it, kicked up the kick stand, and took off smoking the back tire.

Tsume was driving like a mad man, weaving in and out of traffic and finally got on the free way where traffic opened up. He took full advantage of the break in traffic and opened it up full throttle, popping and riding a wheelie as he did. In no time flat, he was up to 130 miles per hour and speed was still climbing. He whooped in excitement, silver ponytail whipping behind him. This was when he truly felt alive, as if he could outrun all the pain and memories. Life or death didn't matter, only living for the moment, and that's what Tsume did best.

* * *

"Why are we even trying to find this wolf anyway? The smell of blood isn't as strong as it was and I can't smell any death in the air. That tells me it's going to be fine." Hige was looking around at the sights as he said this, taking in different parts of the city.

"Do you still have it's trail?" Kiba looked over at his companion with a bland look, then turned his attention back to where they were going. Kiba was starting to get irritated at Hige's pessimistic attitude although he was one to never let his emotions show.

Hige made a face as he answered. "I still somewhat have his scent but it's hard keeping track of it with all the disgusting smells in this city. "This is too hard on my delicate nose you know. Just because I have a very sensitive sniffer doesn't mean that it can handle all the nasty smells around here, what with all the oil and sewage. Ugh, that's the worst part." Hige stopped suddenly, sniffing at the air, eyes half closed in concentration.

"What is it Hige?" Kiba looked at Hige again when he received no answer. Hige was concentrating on the scent to the exclusion of all else. Kiba looked over at Cheza, still amazed that the Flower Maiden had chozen him. She felt his eyes on her and turned her sightless eyes back to him and gave him a loving smile. She clutched onto his arm as they walked. Kiba suddenly remembered something and, turning to her said, "Cheza, when we first met yesterday, what did you mean when you said you failed me? And who else were you talking about? You said all of us. What did you mean by that Cheza?

Cheza's smile slowly disappeared off her face, replaced immediately by one of sadness. She looked away and a single tear rolled down her porcelain cheek. Kiba immediately felt bad for causing her sadness and taking away her smile. He didn't know why such an innocent question had made her so sad.

"Cheza, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

Cheza looked back at Kiba and gave him a sad smile. "It is okay. This one was only remembering very sad memories. This one will answer your question once we have found the others. You all should hear it at the same time. Fang and Whiskers are found. Now We just have to find Claw, and one who is not yet whole. We are already on our way to Howling. Things are going along very well indeed."

Kiba stared at her in confusion. "Fang...Howling. Whiskers? Cheza, what are you talking about.

"This one will tell you soon enough."

Hige suddenly stopped, nose in the air again. "The scent is getting stronger now. I swear, it's going up this road." Hige stopped and sniffed again. "Yep, definitely coming from this direction. So what do ya say we go and introduce ourselves?" Hige looked at Cheza and Kiba with a little grin on his face and his hands laced behind his head. Kiba looked away and in the direction of the road. He looked back at Hige and gave a nod. "Alright, let's go."

* * *

Leara came through the door of her home with several bags of groceries in her arms. She sighed as she set the heavy bags on the kitchen table. She shut the door and then went to the closet to hang up her coat, scarf, and hat. She was heading back to the kitchen to put the groceries away when she heard the sound of whimpering. She went to the living room and found Toboe there, unconceience and shivering uncontrollably. He was thrashing around and having a seizure.

"Oh no, Toboe." Leara ran over to him and tried to hold him down. He was shaking and thrashing so violently, she was afraid he was going to hurt himself or her. She just held on to him as tight as she could and hoped that it would soon be over. "Daddy, I need some help in here!"

"Leara!" Her dad came rushing through the door.

"Daddy, help me. He's going to hurt himself." Her father grabbed Toboe and tried to hold him as well.

"Toboe, if you can hear me, We're here for you so you can just calm down."

They held the little wolf for another few minutes. Leara began to hum a sweet song that her mother used to sing when she was very young to get here to go to sleep. Gradually, he stopped shaking. His breathing, which was eratic, was slowing down to it's normal speed. When he was finally calm and still, they let him go with a look of relief.

Leara's father looked at her with a questioning glance. "What...in the Hell...was that?"

Leara said, " I don't know. When I came in, he was shaking and thrashing violently.

"This is worse than I thought. He might have internal injuries. I'm going to check his wounds." And with that, he started gently unwrapping Toboe's wounds. The bullet graze on his shoulder was healing nicely. There was still some swelling on his head around the gash, but it had gone down significantly. The wound on his chest now, was another story. The area around the wound was an angry red due to inflammation and there was a greenish, yellow puss trickling out of the wound itself. "I was afraid of this. We didn't get to him in time. The wound got infected. Go get the antiseptic and clean gauze from the medicine cabinet. GO!"

Leara ran off to get the required items. While she was gone, there was a knock at the door. Leara's dad ignored the insistant knocking, instead, concentrating on trying to clean the chest wound on Toboe. Leara got back with the medical supplies just as a more persistant knock came at the door.

"Leara, take over here so I can see who's at the door."

"Okay Daddy."

Leara's dad walked to the door. He opened it, seeing three teenagers standing on his porch, two males and one female. One had long brown hair with intense blue eyes. The other had dirty blond hair and gold/brown eyes. The female had purple/silver hair and red eyes.

The boy with the brown hair spoke up. "You have an injuried wolf here. Please take us to him. We may be able to help him."

"The hell I'm letting strangers into my home. Why don't you kids beat it!"

"Hey!", Hige said. " What's your deal man? We just want to help that wolf you have in here."

Cheza, who had been looking at the ground this whole time, suddenly raised her head, turning sightless eyes to Leara's father. "Please mister, This one just wants to help him. This one can feel his pain and confusion. He is dying. This one already feels his heart beat gradually slowing down. He will not last another night if you don't let this one help him." As she said this, tears started sliding down her face due to the pain she was feeling from the little wolf.

Leara's dad relaxed some at hearing her and seeing her tears. He was starting to feel ashamed of the fuss they were making. But he still couldn't put his finger on how they knew the wolf was there. He was expecting the police or even Nobles to show up at his door any minute.

'How do I know you're not lying to me. For all I know, you might turn me in to the police for harboring a wolf."

"If we may step inside sir," Kiba said, "We will show you the proof that that is not the case. We just don't want other people to see it.'

The man nodded his head once and, opening the door wider, he admitted them into his home. Closing the door behind them, he turned to the group and said, "Okay, We're in the clear. Now, what is this proof that you boys want to show me and what is your names.?"  
"I'm Hige and the quiet, serious one over here is Kiba, and that's Cheza, and I don't even know if we should be telling you this or not because you might just freak out," Hige said.

"Look son, I just found out that my daughter's best friend is a wolf. Nothing much can faze me at this point."

"So," Kiba asked. "What happened?"

Leara began retelling her story to the two. "And then I ran. I was so terrified and confused. I heard him calling my name and I even heard the pain in his voice but I didn't stop. Suddenly, I couldn't hear him anymore. I stopped and leaned against a building just crying and not knowing what to do. I was having a mental battle with myself. I finally decided that friendship trumps confusion and terror and started trying to find him. My dad showed up and I told him what happened and then convinced him to help me find Toboe. When we found him, he was unconscience.

"I'm sorry" Kiba said.

"Kiba." Hige said seriously. "Can we talk for a minute?"

Kiba gave him a questioning look. "Uh,...Yeah, Okay."

The two walk into the hallway of the house away from the other two and Hige turns to Kiba. "Are you really sure you want to do this Kiba? I mean, He might turn us over to the nobles if he finds out."

"I think it will be alright, Hige." Kiba was trying to reassure his companion. "He appearantely already knew about Toboe changing forms. And yet, He was helping him. He doesn't seem like a bad sort. I think it will be alright."

"If you say so. I still don't like it though. "

They returned to the living room area. The man looked at them suspiciously. "What was that all about?"

"Just trying to decide whether or not to trust you. This is something we don't take lightly." Kiba looked at Hige. "Hige, do it." And with that, they shifted into their true forms.

A startled gasp came from Leara and her father. Where a brown headed boy and a sandy haired boy once stood, now there was two wolves in place of them. Leara just kept staring. She couldn't help it. Her eyes kept flicking back and forth between Hige's husky brown form to the beautiful snow white pelt of Kiba.

"Oh, they're so beautiful!" She slowly approached them. "H-Hige, is that you?"

"You betcha," came Hige's unmistakable jovial voice.

She turned to the white wolf. "Kiba?"

Kiba took a couple steps forward and nuzzled his nose into her hand. She knelt to the floor and started softly rubbing kiba's head and scratching behind his ears. Kiba almost curled his lips back and was close to letting loose a growl when he realized that they were trying to gain these people's trust. As soon as the ear scratching started though, Kiba completely relaxed. 'Strange how good that feels. Where the hell has my pride gone?'

"Well Leara,'" her father spoke up. "I think he likes you."

"Yeah, I guess so." She stopped scratching as she looked at her father. Kiba's eyes snapped open and he nuzzled her hand again. Leara laughed and started scratching under his chin. His eyes drooped closed in contentment again.

While this was going on, Hige was slowly making his way over to Leara. He nudged her unoccopied hand. She looked over at him. "You want petted too Hige?"

Hige whined and nuzzled her hand. She started petting him too and in no time flat, he was rolled over on his back and getting his belly rubbed. Before he knew it, his leg was kicking back and forth uncontrollably. Suddenly, laughter was heard behind them. Leara jumped which made her stop scratching. Cheza waas laughing at the antics of Hige and couldn't stop. Suddenly, Leara's father joined in and leara as well, all laughing uncontrollably. Kiba looked at Hige, who was still laying on his back on the floor and Hige looked back at him as if to say-"what?"

Suddenly, a whimper was heard from behind them, snapping them back to reality. Cheza immediately stopped laughing and made her way over to Toboe, Leara and her father right behind her. Kiba followed. When Hige went running after them, his paws couldn't get any traction on the slick floor. He went sliding into the wall and a picture fell on his head. His head went through the picture and the frame hung around him like a collar.

Everyone looked back at him. A whine excaped his mouth and he looked down in shame. "I'm so sorry. The floor was a little slick and I sorta slipped." They just stared blankly at him for a minute and then everyone busted out laughing again. Hige glared at them. "Not funny." Leara, still giggling, came over to Hige and took the frame from around his neck. Hige got up, shook himself, and then made his way over to the others.

Cheza composed herself and started looking at Toboe's wounds. His breathing was very shallow. She began to rub her hands in his soft pelt. Her hand hovered over the gash on his head. A soft light was emitted from her hand, a lunar glow shined over the wound. In seconds, the wound was closed up.

"Wow," Leara's father exclaimed. "How did she do that? That was amazing."

Kiba glanced over at him and then looked back at Cheza. "It's kinda hard to explain."

Cheza, by now was finished tending to the wound on his shoulder. When she got to the wound on his chest however, she started quietly sobbing. Kiba nuzzled her with his muzzle. "Cheza, what's the matter?"

Cheza looked over at Kiba. "This one has the power to heal wounds on wolves. Flesh will mend together once more as if nothing had happened. This one can do the same to the wound on his chest also."

"I don't get it Cheza. If you can help him, then why are you so sad?'

"Because Kiba, there is nothing this one can do about the infection that is slowly killing him."

Kiba looked distraughtly at Leara and her father. "Is there nothing that can be done? He's not gonna make it much longer."

"The only thing that will help him now is antibiotics. Unfortunatally, You can't get those without a prescription.

Cheza's sobs continued. Kiba felt the wave of emotions rolling off Cheza and bowling him over like an avalanche. Kiba looked from Cheza to the wolf pup on the floor who was at the wrong place at the wrong time, just enjoying the company of this human girl. He didn't deserve any of this. Kiba didn't understand why he felt this way. He had seen wolves die before, but never had he felt the sense of loss or sadness as he was feeling now. He felt like he was losing a family member or even a brother. Grief was clenching his heart like a vise. Toboe hadn't even matured yet. He was going to miss out on a lot of what life has to offer. He studied the wolf's face, so full of sweet innocence. Kiba's heart was suddenly struggling to beat, his chest all knotted up. A fierce pain that wouldn't go away. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair that this pup had to die. This young pup didn't deserve this. Suddenly, his vision got blurry. He squeezed his eyes shut for a brief moment. When he opened them again, He was standing in a vast forest covered in snow. Mist was swirling around. He could tell it was bitterly cold but for some reason, he didn't feel it at all. He looked around, trying to get his bearings as well as a clue as to where he was. As he peered through the snow and darkness, he noticed a shape of a figure on the horizon. He squinted his eyes, trying to make the shape out. The wind changed direction and he smelled the scent of lunar flowers as well as the scent of something more familiar, a scent that was a lot like his own and yet, somehow different. He could see no distinguishing features other than that of the shape of a wolf He saw two points of light where the eyes should have been. The light was the same color as the light of the moon. As a desperate plea, running only on instinct alone, Kiba tilted his head back, and let loose a hauntingly powerful howl to the heavens above, singing his anguish for the wolf pup and the flower maiden who had to bear all of his pain. And then, surprisingly, the wolf answered back with a howl of it's own. Kiba blinked his eyes again and he was back in Leara's house. Hige was busy waving a hand in front of his face. Kiba jerked back. "What?

"Just making sure you were still with us. Man, you kinda hazed out there for a minute. And the strangest thing happened. When you kinda left earth for a moment, the glow Cheza's hand was giving off got brighter and stronger. Next thing we know, the wound was closed and the infection was practically gone. The pup's gonna be okay."

"Good," Kiba stated.

Kiba turned towards where the wolf pup was laying and, sure enough, His breathing had settled down and was normal. The smell of death was no longer in the air. And even though he still slept, It was a normal, restful sleep and not the sleep of the dead or dying. Kiba was gratified that the wolf pup was going to make it but was left to wander how it happened. He kept playing that vision over and over in his mind. Who was that strange wolf. Was it really a vision or was he just losing his mind?

Suddenly, on a whim, he turned to Hige and, speaking low enough so that only he could hear, asked, "Hige, did I say or do anything when I hazed out?"

Hige turned to Kiba and said, "Nope, just stared at the wall for what seemed like an hour, that's all. Why do ya ask?"

..."No reason."

* * *

The She-wolf's eyes shot open. She raised her head up from her paws and looked all around her, heart beating furiously, chest tightning with anxiety and sorrow like she never felt before. She realized that she somehow wound up outside of the cave she was using for shelter. 'That was different,' she thought. The dream couldn't have been no more random. She was in a house with a husky brown wolf, a beautiful white wolf and two humans. There was also a very unique girl in there who seemed to be sobbing. She looked down and saw a cinnamon and brown colored wolf laying on the floor, wounded and near death. She could feel the emotional pain radiating off of all of them The white wolf suddenly looked up, almost as if staring into her eyes, and let loose the most anguished howl she had ever heard. She couldn't help it. She pointed her muzzle to the sky and cut loose with her own howl. It was like beautiful music as the two wolves howled their pain to the moon above. Although she didn't realize it, the markings on her body had started to glow as well as her eyes. As she howled, she felt a strange power emanating from her. It was the most earie feeling. And that white wolf. He was the same one from her dreams. So was this another dream? She shook her head, trying to clear it from the confusing thoughts. She got up, unable to sleep now with the confusion in her mind, and trotted over to the nearby stream. She sat outside underneith the moon, letting the rays shine down on her, clensing her soul. 'Who is this wolf? And why do I feel so connected to him? I feel like I should know him but I don't. I keep dreaming about him. And this last one was really freaky.' So jumbled was her thoughts that she didn't notice the anxiety was gone, replaced with an inner peace that seemed to defy all logic. It was almost like she accomplished something very important and couldn't help but smile. "Huh, must be getting all adle brained or something. Ah well, I won't be able to figure it out tonight." She gave a mighty yawn, tongue lolling out of her mouth as she did so. finally relaxed somewhat, she slunk back to the cave. She curled up and went back to a dreamless sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Kiba sat in the backyard of Leara's house with Cheza, looking intently at the moon overhead. He was still contemplating that strange experience where he hazed out while Cheza was tending to Toboe. He couldn't understand what had happened. He kept going over and over it again in his mind. It wasn't a dream because he had still been awake. It wasn't a vision because the outcome of whatever it was resulted in Toboe surviving the infection. The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. He shook himself and pushed the problem to a dark corner of his mind for now, instead focusing on more pleasant things. He looked over at Cheza and smiled. He had finally found her. The flower maiden. All the traveling, all the heartache, all the pain and misery had been worth it. He had finally found her and was now one step closer to finding paradise.

Cheza sensed Kiba looking at her and looked back at him with her blind red orbs. She gave a small smile and reached out and softly stroked his neck. Kiba's eyes closed and he leaned into her hand while she petted him. It always felt good to be petted by Cheza. Just being in her very presence made him feel as if everything was right with the world.

Sensing movement behind them, Kiba looked over his shoulder as Hige joined them outside.

"Hey guys, hows it going?" Hige settled on the other side of Cheza as he spoke, tail gently wagging.

"Everything's alright," replied Kiba. "How's the pup doing?"

"Leara says he's going to be alright. He just has to rest for a little while. He's still asleep actually"

"That's good, I'm glad."

"So what are you going to do now?"

"As soon as we've finished resting, me and Cheza are leaving the city."

"Leaving the city huh? The only thing out there is wasteland. What's out there that could possibly be important?"

"Paradise." Kiba looks over at Hige as he says this, fire burning in his eyes and a look of determination upon his face. "We're going to find paradise."

Hige looks at him for a moment before grinning. "Paradise huh, sounds interesting."

Cheza looks over at Hige and says, "This one wants to know if you will come with us."

Hige looks at Kiba questionly. Kiba stares back but his eyes reveal nothing.

Hige looks at the moon for a moment contemplating. Finally, He looks at the others and says with a jovial smile, "sound like fun. Sure, I'd love to go with ya."

Cheza beams at him and says, "This one is so happy. Thank you."

Hige looks back at her and says, "you're welcome, I guess."

Cheza turns back to Kiba with a serious expression on her face. "This one also thinks Toboe should go as well."

Kiba stares at her in shock. "I don't think that is such a good idea Cheza. Toboe is still a pup. He's much to young to go on that kind of a journey."

Cheza answers back stubboringly. "This one thinks he will be a vital part to our success. He must come."

Kiba looks away, thinking for a minute. He finally looks back at her and says, "Okay, he can come. I still think it will be too dangerous for him though.

Cheza smiles and says, "Thank you Kiba"

At about that time, Leara comes out of the house. "Daddy said you guys can stay the night if you want to. It's a little to late to be leaving right now."

Kiba looks at her and says, "Thank you. Your hospitality is most welcome."

Leara giggles and then looks at Cheza. "I wanted to thank you for helping Toboe. I don't know how you did it or even what you did but I will forever be grateful.

"This one was happy to help him. This one felt his pain and it made this one sad."

At about that time, Hige comes up behind Leara and nuzzles her hand. She jumps, startled, until she turns around and sees that it is just Hige. He nuzzles her hand again and then stands there with his head cocked to the side, tail wagging. Leara laughs and starts petting his head. He lays his ears flat and closes his eyes, enjoying the affection.

Leara laughed at Hige as she continued to pet him. After a few moments, she stood up and said, " I'm going to go to bed. Ya'll come on in when you want. Goodnight." And with that, she walked back into the house.

Hige yawned and stretch the full length of his body. "I think I'm going to bed as well. See ya," he said, walking off.

Cheza looks at Kiba. "You should get some rest as well Kiba. You look very tired."

"You're right Cheza. Lets go."

And with that, they went into the house to get some rest.

* * *

Toboe slowly opens his eyes. Everything around him was in a blurry haze. He looked around, trying to get his bearings. His vision slowly came back into focus and he noticed he was in the living room of a house. As he slowly moved his head taking in his surroundings, he noticed a white and brown shape nearby. As he focused on the shapes, he recognized them to be wolves. The brown wolf was still sleeping, snoring away. The white wolf was staring intently at him. Toboe shrank away from the stare of the white wolf. His ears flatened on his head and he looked away.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you there. Name's Kiba. The one snoring like a freight train is Hige."

It was then that Toboe felt a presence off to the side. He looks over and sees crimson eyes staring at him. It was a girl. A human looking girl. Toboe shrank away from her with a whimper.

"It is okay. Do not be afraid. This one means you no harm."

Toboe stood, looking at her. He started to feel a calm peace come over him. Without even realizing it, He was walking over to the strange girl as if in a trance. As soon as he got near her, he rubbed his head against her outstretch hands. She began petting him and he slowly sank to the floor, laying his head in her lap, fully at peace. After petting him for a minute she stopped. He raises his head up and looks at her. She slowly puts her arms around his neck, hugging him like he was her long lost friend.

"This one is glad to see you again Toboe. This one has missed you."

"Again, Have we met before?" Toboe asks in confusion.

"Yes. It is a long story and This One shall wait to tell it later. This one's name is Cheza." Cheza turns back to Kiba. "Fang, Whiskers, and Howling have been found. Now all we need is Claw and the one who is not whole."

Toboe looks at Cheza confused. Kiba just looks at him and gives a shrug. "She's said that several times now. I don't know what it means anymore than you do. She refuses to elaborate on it any further until we find a couple other wolves."

Toboe started sniffing the air. "You smell lovely Cheza. Like flowers."

"What you're smelling is the smell of lunar flowers."

"Why do you smell like lunar flowers Cheza?"

"Because this one is made from a Lunar Flower."

"Huh?", "Really?"

"Really."

Hige walked up to toboe and, ruffling his hair said, "you sure do ask a lot of questions, don't ya runt?"

Toboe looked up at him irritated. "The name's not runt. The name's Toboe.

* * *

Later on, Kiba, Hige, and Cheza was saying goodbye to Leara and her dad. "It was good meeting you guys," Leara said waving. "Be careful out there," her dad added.

Toboe stood away from the wolves with his head bowed. He was now in his human form. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Kiba staring at him. Toboe manages to meet his gaze. Nervously, he said, "I wanted to thank you f-for helping me. I'm sorry I was so much trouble."

"Nah, you weren't any trouble at all," Hige said with a grin.

"We were just glad to help," Kiba added. Kiba clears his throat and then asks, "Toboe, why don't you come with us."

Toboe stared at him uncomprehendly, then said, "Come with you, where are you going?

"To Paradise."

"Paradise, why would you want me to come with you? I'm just a pup."

"Because, this one wants you with us. You are essential to this journey, this one knows it."

Toboe stared at her in shock. "How could I be essential? I'm still just a pup."

"Well," Hige said speaking up. "I think it would be cool for you to tag along."

"This one wants you with us. This one would be happy for you to be with us."

Toboe smiled when she said this. He had never been wanted before other than by Leara, so it shocked him that they felt this way about him.  
He looked at all of them for a moment. He looked at the smiling jovial face of Hige, the fierce determination of Kiba, and finally, the smiling visage of Cheza who so wanted him to come along. "Alright, I'll go. It could be fun."

"Just remember," Kiba said, looking at Toboe seriously. "It's not going to be an easy journey. The road to Paradise is paved in blood. But it is a journey well worth making if you're stronge enough and brave enough for it.

Toboe looked at Kiba in all seriousness and said, "Kiba, I promise, I won't let you down. I may not be as strong or as fast but I'll do everything I can to see this through till the end. When you mentioned paradise, It sounded...no, felt so familiar. It's like someone has told me about it before. Cheza's scent is so strangly familiar. But I can't place how I know this."

"Well then, let's go." And with that, Kiba turned to walk away.

"Wait!"

They turned back to see Leara come barreling out of the house. She ran right to Toboe and threw her arms around him, squeezing him tight. Toboe stood there stunned for a moment. He then put his arms around Leara and hugged her back.

"Please be careful," she whispered. "I don't understand what is going on, but I know there will be danger involved."

"Don't worry Leara, I'll be fine. I am a wolf after all." Toboe released her. She turned to the rest of the wolves and said, "Take good care of him."

Hige laughed and said, "We won't let nothing happen to the runt, don't worry."

Toboe glared at Hige. "It's Toboe."

"Yeah sure, shake a leg."

The four walked away from the house and took the first steps on their journey to paradise.

* * *

"So, what do we do first?" Toboe asked as they walked. They had been walking for about thirty minutes and was still a long ways off from the gates to the city. All this time, Toboe had been asking questions and trying to get to know his new friends. From what he learned so far, Kiba has always had a calling to seek Paradise and Hige had a past that was missing bits and pieces. He had come from a pack of twenty wolves from the east. Human wolf hunters came and ...that was all he could remember. He then remembers running through a city with a strange metal collar on his neck. Whether he was running from or to something, he didn't know. And Cheza, Cheza was an enigma for sure. No one knows anything about her. All she would say is that she waited for many years for Kiba to show up and that she is a plant, not a human. No one knows where she comes from or anything else about her.

"So runt, you sure ask a lot of questions.

"Well, that's how you learn stuff."

Hige just laughed at that.

"First," Kiba said speaking up, "We find a way out of this city."

"Next question," Hige asked, "Which direction?"

"Wherever instinct guides us."

They continued walking for about an hour. Hige had swiped some hotdogs from a vendor for everybody. They ate as they walked, each lost in their own thoughts. Kiba was trying to figure out a way out of the city, Hige was busy looking at all the "lovely ladies" as he put it. Toboe was still trying to get his head wrapped around the idea that he was going on a journey to paradise. As they continued walking, Kiba kept getting a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that they were being watched. He looked behind him but didn't see anybody following them. Of course, whoever it was could be hidden in shadow. Right about then, they heard sirens and gunshots. There was screaming coming from a few streets over and then the painful yelp of a dog...or a wolf.

"Um, guys," Hige said nervously. "Don't you think we should, oh I don't know, maybe beat paws and get outta here?"

"What is going on." Toboe exclaimed."

"I don't know, but I think things just got a little more complicated." Kiba said. "Let's go!"

* * *

Tsume braked hard coming to a traffic light and cursed as it turned red. "Stupid idiot, damn light was still yellow," he muttered. He sat there waiting for the light to change and contemplating the most recent turn of events. 'Why do I keep having dreams about that white wolf? This shit just doesn't make any since.' The light changed and he put his feet back on the pegs and started rolling. Tsume kept with the traffic, for once not speeding or driving dangerously. He popped the clutch and shifted the Harley into the next gear and was heading to the south side of town.

Tsume heard gunfire coming from the right and stopped at an intersection to see what the commotion was about. He watched in horror as he saw soldiers had two wolves surrounded. The soldiers cut loose with gunfire at the same time, drowning out the yelps of pain from the two wolves as the fell over dead. Tsume took off again, a shiver going up his spine.

'What the hell,' he thought. 'Maybe there's something on the news about this.'

Tsume turned the radio on and was apalled at what he heard.

"This just in. The Noble Military has devised a way to see past the human illusions wolves cast on themselves to fool us. This device, which the military refuses to disclose at this present time, should go a long way towards ridding our city of the problematic infestation of the wolves and make our city a far safer place to live."

Tsume cut the radio off in disgust as he heard this. He continued driving until he came upon his apartment building. He stopped a block back as he saw lights from several police cruisers were flashing all over the place. His apartment building was swarming with cops.

'Shit, I got to get out of here.'

Tsume turned the bike around and went the other way. He detoured around the block his building was on and then continued heading south.

'How did they find out I was a wolf? How did they find out a wolf was living there? It just doesn't make any sense.

* * *

Kiba stopped and held up a hand. He looked around, using all of his heightened senses, trying to locate the source of his unease.

"Why did we stop Kiba?" Hige asked.

"Something's not right. I don't know what it is but something just does not feel right."

"Guys, do you hear that?"

"What is it runt?"

"It sounds like something buzzing in the air."

As they stood there listening, a faint buzzing could be heard coming their way. As it came closer, a horrified expression came to Hige's face. "We have to get outta here, NOW!"

"What is it Hige?" Kiba asked.

"Drones. They have special cameras that can spot our true forms. We have to get outta here now."

They started running, trying to find a place to get away from the drone before it spotted them. They ran down alleys and across streets, trying to give it the shake. as they rounded a corner out of a dark alley, they came face to face with another drone. Kiba jumped in the air and destroyed it, but not before it emitted a high pitched alarm.

"Damn it," Hige exclaimed. "Now every cop and military personal in the city will be alerted to our presence. We have to leave the city.

"Run," Kiba said.

They ran for all they was worth. But it was to no avail. As they came to an intersection, soldiers had them surrounded on all sides, guns drawn. Kiba, Hige, and Toboe backed up against each other, surrounding Cheza in the center to protect her.

"Ah man, we are so screwed," Hige said with fear in his voice.

"Kiba, what are we going to do?" Toboe whined.

"If we stand and fight, we die. If we try to run, Cheza dies. Damned if you do and damned if you don't I guess," Hige remarked. he couldn't help but think that this was the end for them. That and he wanted another hotdog.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: i realized that I forgot the disclaimer last chapter. No I do not own wolfs rain. I only own this story and the oc's that appear in this story.**

 **I wanted to thank my first follower since I forgot to last time. Sorry bout that. So, narutolover10110, thank you for following and favorating my story. I also wanted to thank GypsyLass30 for following as well. I considerate it an honor because your story Wolfs Rain new beginning and final destination was what inspired me to break out of my shell and do something I have always wanted to do. Write a story. So thank you for your story and I encourage all of you who read this to check out her story as well as all the others out there. I realized how much courage it takes to put your work out there after starting this and I hope that this story brings joy to people. So without further ado, on with the story.**

* * *

The wolves and the flower maiden was cornered. The soldiers were prepared to fire. This was most definitaly not looking good. Kiba was doing some seriously quick thinking. He evaluated the situation, enviroment, enemy, and possible escape routes. He came up with and discarded numerous plans until he found the one that had the best odds. He did all of this in a matter of a few seconds. He then turned to Toboe, handing Cheza to him.

Toboe looked at Kiba with some confusion.

"Toboe, take Cheza and jump on the roof of the building behind us. Then find a safe place to hide. We'll catch up. Don't argue," he said when toboe opened his mouth to speak. "Just do it. Hige and I will hold them off. Now go, and whatever you do, be careful."

Toboe nodded and, taking Cheza's hand, said, "Don't worry Cheza, 'I'll protect you.

Toboe tensed his legs and then jumped for all he was worth.

Tsume gunned the engine and increased speed, pulling ahead of the police that were on his tail. Somehow, they kept on him even after losing sight of him multiple times. Tsume gritted his teeth and kept going. These cops were really pissing him off. He went through some S-turns and came to a straight stretch. cops had the bridge barricaded off. Tsume shifted to the next gear and accelerated so quickly, the front wheel came up off the ground. He brought the bike back down and continued to increase his speed. when he was about at the bridge, the police started firing. Tsume swerved, avoiding the bullets, and whent to the side of the bridge where the bank sloped upward some. He hit the natural made ramp and sailed through the air, hoping he didn't screw up on the landing.

* * *

Hige lepted at another soldier, sinking his fangs into his throat. The soldier went down, his cry of pain gurgled with his own blood. Hige leapt up from the soldiers body, looking for his next target.

The battle had not been going well for the wolves. Kiba's legs was shaking from the numerous wounds in his body made by swords and axes. His snow white pelt turned to crimson from all the blood pouring out of his body. He currently was suffering a bullet in his shoulder and his side was grazed as well. Hige was a little better but not by much. He had got grazed in the face by a bullet he was too slow to dodge and has numerous cuts on his flanks and chest.

Kiba stole a glance at Hige as he went for his next target. Hige was barely holding up as was he and there was still at least ten soldiers left.

Kiba quickly took out his next opponent and landed next to Hige. "We need to get outta here!" Hige exclaimed. Kiba looked around and saw an opportunity.

"Hige, if we attack two soldiers next to each other, we can break through that way. Then we can lose them and make our way back around to Toboe.

"Gotcha."

"Okay, on three. ...one...two...THREE!"

The two wolves lept at the two soldiers, quickly taking them down. Quick as lightening, they ran, bullets ricocheting around them and whizzing past them.

"The roof!" Kiba yelled.

The two wolves jumped up and continued running, leaping from roof top to roof top. They eventually lost their pursurers and finally collapsed, their sides heaving as the tried to get their breath. Kiba was the first to try to stand, but his injured leg gave out from under him and he fell again. Kiba just laid there, sides heaving as he tried to get energy back. Hige finally tried to stand and, although he was shaky, finally managed. He walked over to Kiba and leaned against him. kiba looked over at him and, realizing what he was doing, attempted to stand again. With Hige's support, he was successful. They made their way to a roof entrance and, going through it, slowly made their way down the stairs until coming out the door at the bottom of the building. They made their way down the street, trying to find Toboe and Cheza. Hige delicatelly sniffed the air, his mouth slightly opened, his eyes closed in concentration. Kiba might have laughed at the hilarious expression on Hige's face if it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation. Hige continued to sniff the air, and picking up something, led Kiba by still supporting him down an alley. They walked around for another hour attempting to find the others when Kiba suddenly collapsed. Hige turned towards him in alarm and noticed that the blood flowing out of Kiba was a lot worse then before. He had passed out from blood loss.

'Great, now what do I do?" It's not like he could go find Toboe. He would be forced to leave a wounded Kiba by himself. Even though he had only known Kiba for a few days, he couldn't just do that. He could howl for Toboe, but that would mean the police and soldiers would hear it as well and come to investigate. That would be no good. Hige slumped down next to Kiba, trying to think. There was really no other option. He would have to wait till Kiba woke up and then move on to trying to find Toboe and Cheza. He shifted, trying to get comfortable. It was going to be a long wait.

* * *

The wind roared in his ears as he sailed through the air. Time seemed to go in slow motion. His ponytail was whipping behind him. He felt as well as saw the descent of the other side of the bank coming towards him. Tsume bent low over the handle bars as the tires impacted with the bank. The back tire slid back and forth in the mud from the previous days rain. Tsume fough the bike, trying to regain control. He finally got it going in a straight line as the cops got over their shock of his stunt and began firing on him. Tsume gunned the bike and lit out of there. He was quickly ahead of the cops and continued going. he arrived in downtown Lowstrom and cut up and down alleys and roads until he lost them. He continued to travel towards the outskirts of the city. After about fifteen minutes, Tsume heard a comotion a little ways ahead of him. He picked up the scent of another wolf and a...a ...flower? Tsume shook his head to clear his thoughts. As he was nearing an intersection, he heard gunfire and men shouting.

* * *

Toboe hid with Cheza behind some parked cars. The gunfire continued at a relentless pace. Toboe knelt down, grimacing at the pain in his leg where a soldier had sliced him with a knife earlier. The humans was starting to surround their hiding area. Toboe starting backing up just as a soldier poked his head around the corner. Toboe dove at him just as he released a barrage of bullets. Unfortunatelly, he couldn't get the gun up in time and the bullets hit the sidewalk under Toboe as he was sailing through the air. Toboe's fangs came down on the man's arm with a sickening crunch. The soldier screamed as he dropped his gun. Toboe's weight, as he went down, drug the man down with him, rendering him unconscience. Toboe let go of the man's arm and quickly got back behind the cars again just as more bullets ripped past him. All the while Cheza stayed crouched behind the car she was hidding behind, a look of fright and concern on her face. Toboe was about to suggest they run for it when the gunfire suddenly changed direction. The men started screaming, and above the ruckess, Toboe heard sounds of loud growling and snarling. Toboe poked his head out from behind the car just in time to see the last man fall.

Standing over the last dead soldier was a gray wolf with blood dripping off his muzzle and his fangs. He had several superficial wounds on his flanks. He slowly turned, his grey fur rippling in the breeze, the "X" shaped scar prominate on his chest. He shook the blood off of him and then shifted into his human form. Toboe looked in awe at this wolf. He had seen him before and had even talked to him. He had tried being friends with him before but Tsume would always run him off. Now, Tsume looked at him with a mixture of shock and annoyance in his eyes. He slowly walked over to him and Cheza.

"What the hell is going on here runt? And who the hell is this?"

"Tsume, the soldiers have a way of seeing us for what we really are. Me and the others have been on the run for half the day now."

"Others?"

"Yeah. Have you seen them? We kinda got seperated."

"Well, who are they?"

"Well, you got Hige. He's a bigger brown wolf who loves to eat. And you got Kiba. He's very quiet and doesn't talk much, but he's nice. he's pure white with golden eyes."

"A white wolf huh? I had a run-in with him a day or two ago."

"So have you seen them?" he asked with eyes full of hope and fear. Tsume just looked at him with mild amusement. Then the wind shifted and both he and Toboe looked at each other and spoke a single word at the same time.

"Humans."

"Ah holy hell!" Tsume exclaimed. He ran back over to where he parked the bike and jumped on it, firing it up as he did.

"Tsume, where are you going?"

"To take care of some business. Take freak girl and get outta here."

"Her name is not freak girl. It's Cheza." Toboe said indignatly.

"Don't have time for details runt, just get the hell outta here. NOW!"

As Tsume peeled away, toboe took Cheza's hand and began running the other direction, back towards Kiba and Hige.

"Cheza, can you sense Kiba or Hige. I can't even pick up on their scents.

"Cheza stopped running and Toboe stopped and turned to her. She had her head tilted up to the sky with a look of concentration on her face.

"Cheza?" Toboe said. he stared at her, unsure of what to do or even say. Cheza continued staring at the sky for another couple of minutes and then turned her head to the left.

"This way."

They started running down the street where Cheza indicated. They ran for about an hour when Toboe finally picked up on the scent of his friends. He also picked up on another scent. Wolf blood. Particularly, Kiba and Hige's. Toboe ran faster, continuing to hold Cheza by the hand to guide her. They came to an alleyway and Toboe stopped. The others scents were coming from that alley.

"Kiba, Hige?" Toboe yelled as he and Cheza ran down the alley.

"Runt?" Hige sounded suprised to hear his voice.

Toboe got to the end of the alley and saw Hige sitting on the ground leaned up against the wall. Beside him laid Kiba in his wolf form. Toboe then noticed the many wounds on the two of them.

"Oh no, Hige, are you two okay?"

"Yeah, not bad for being a diced up wolf," he said with a small chuckle.

Cheza went up to him and started trying to heal his wounds. Hige shook his head and said, "No Cheza. Do Kiba first. He got it worst off then me. I've already got the bullet out of his shoulder.

Cheza nodded in understanding. She turned her attention towards Kiba and started petting him, running her fingers through his fur. As she did so, she found several injuries on him and started to heal them. When she got to the bullet wound on his shoulder, she spent a good amount of time on it. When she was done, she moved on to Hige's injuries. As she was finishing up on Hige, Kiba was starting to wake up.

Toboe looked over at Kiba as he was starting to stir.

"Kiba, you're awake. Are you okay? You had us worried there for a minute."

Kiba's eyes opened and he stared at Toboe for a minute. His eyes finally opened fully and he groaned as he tried to sit up.

"Stay still Kiba. This one has healed you but you need to rest now."

Kiba tried sitting up again. "No time for rest. We have to get out of this city. The longer we delay, the quicker it will be for the humans to capture us.

Toboe and Cheza gave each other a worried look. Hige was going to try arguing with Kiba about his safety but saw the determination in Kiba's eyes.

Kiba struggled until he was standing upright. He looked at the rest of them and said, "alright then, let's go." And with that, he took off down the alley and towards the street.

"Does anybody know which way the gates to the city are." Toboe asked.

"Not really. I just say keep running and we might even get lucky enough to find it." Hige exclaimed.

They ran through the streets, ducking down alleyways every now and then to avoid soldiers and police. They were heading down another alley when Kiba held up a hand and stopped.

"I'm going to get a birds eye view. Be right back." And with that, he jumped to the nearest roof and did some looking around. What he saw gave him chills. In nearly every direction he could look , he saw chaos and anarchy. fires raged eveywhere. He continued searching until he finally found what he was looking for. "There," he said. He spotted the city's gate about five miles out. Kiba jumped down from the roof to report his findings to the others.

"We can escape the city by heading that direction . Only problem is, there's riots going on all over the place. and there is also police and military swarming all over the place. We're going have to be careful."

Hige thought for a moment and then asked, "Are you thinking of sneaking past them or creating a diversion?"

"No Hige. That wouldn't work. The only thing I can think to do is try to go around. It will take a lot longer, but is also safer."

Hige nodded and turned to Toboe. "You ready?" Toboe nods his head.

"Yep, let's get outta here."

Kiba looks at Cheza. "Let's go."

Cheza smiles. Kiba takes her hand and they all start running. They decided to head east and circle around the riots and comotion and then head back south to get to the gates safely. They sneaked through alleyways and by the time they were heading for the gates, it was well past midnight. They crept down the street, four shadows moving through the night. They wasn't far from the gates when a bright light flared on, blinding them. They threw their hands up, trying to shield their eyes. At that time, lights and sirens came on. They heard booted feet running towards them. By the time their eyes had adjusted, they were surrounded by soldiers and military vehicles. Kiba snarled and shifted into his true form as did Hige and Toboe. It would do no good trying to stay human because the humans already knew them for who they were.

"Shit they got us surrounded," Hige swore. He looked around, trying to find some escape but every route was blocked off. They even had snipers on the roof tops. Hige swore under his breath and got himself ready.

"Get out of our way!" Kiba yelled. "We don't want no trouble, we're just trying to leave."

One of the soldiers stepped forward. He held a megaphone to his mouth and was assumed to be the commander. "Surrender and there will be no blood shed. We only came after the flower maiden. Let her go into our custody and you will be spared."

Kiba bared his fangs, looking like a ferocious ghost to all observers. "You can have her when my cold dead body is lying at your feet. Come anywhere near her and you will die."

Hige looked at Kiba in shock. He leaned over to Kiba and whispered, "Uh, Kiba. I kinda don't want to die today.

Kiba looked over at Hige. "Losing your wolf pride, Hige?"

"No. I still have my wolf pride. It's just it wont do you, me, or even Cheza any good if we're both dead you know."

At this time, the commander held the megaphone up to his mouth again and said, "You have till the count of three to release the flower maiden or we will open fire."

Kiba looked at Hige and Toboe. "ready to attack?"

"...ONE..."

Hige answers, "Hey, what's the worst that can happen, we die? Hah, I don't think so."

"...TWO..."

Toboe spoke up. "I don't want to die. But I won't let them take Cheza. She's important to Kiba and I won't be scared off by a bunch of humans.

"Well spoken runt. Let's show these pathetic humans what we can do."

"Here we go," Kiba said.

"...THREE, men, open fire.

Gun barrels started flashing as bullets ripped into the night. the wolves dodge out of the way while Cheza hid behind a parked vehicle. As a unit, the wolves started ripping into the humans with fangs and claws. Toboe wasn't as strong or as fast as the other two, but he made up for his short comings with determination and attitude. Fangs and claws found their mark more often then not as the wolves continued the battle for freedom. But they were starting to tire out. At this time, the battle had been going on for a while now and over half the soldiers had dropped by this time. Kiba sensed something behind him and ducked left as a bullet came wizzing by him, grazing the side of his head from his eye to his ear. He yelped in surprise and looked around for where the bullet came from. He then noticed the snipers up on the roofs.

"Hige, hold them off."

Hige looked exasperated. "What the hell do you think I'm doing?"

Kiba broke through the ranks of soldiers and went down an alley. He jumped, leaping from one wall to another until he was on the roof. He found the first sniper and took him out, spilling his blood all over the roof. He continued form roof top to roof top in this fashion, taking out snipers along the way.

"Meanwhile, on the street, Hige and Toboe was back to back (or haunch to haunch as it were) trying to fend off the soldiers. Hige sank his fangs into another soldier. while he was pre-occupied with that one, Toboe spotted another soldier about to get the jump on Hige.

"Hige, look out," Toboe called out as he ran over to the soldier, bowling into him. As he did this another soldier got the jump on him. Toboe suddenly felt himself flying through the air as a boot connected with his ribs. He yelped as he landed, pain coursing through his side. He tried to stand on shaky legs as a soldier bared down on him. As he was about to deal the final blow, a streak of white flew by the soldier. The soldier stood there in shock for a second and then a spurt of red fountained from his throat. The soldier gurgled in agony and then fell to the ground, dead. Toboe looked up and saw Kiba standing there. He slowly turned around and gave toboe a kind look.

"Are you okay?" Kiba asked him.

"I'm fine Kiba. Just a little shaken up. Ribs hurt but I'll be okay.

Kiba continued to look at him with that piercing gaze for a moment and then nodded his head. "Let's go help Hige."

Toboe smiled and, following Kiba, went back to the battle.

The fight raged on for the longest time. fangs and claws finding their mark more often then not. fur and blood flying and splatering on the ground. The wolves fought bravely but was quickly getting overwhelmed. Soon the soldiers had them backed up to the building and the wolves were making their last stand.

"Well guys, we tried our best. But it looks like this is the end of the line." Hige said remorsefully.

* * *

Tsume, at this point in time, was coming up on the scene with the wolves. He stopped as he saw what was going on in front of him. He saw the predicament the wolves were in. He turned his bike around and started driving away, leaving the wolves to their fate. as he drove away, a nagging feeling was itching at the back of his mind. He thought about the white wolf who had saved his life. He thought about the pup who for some unknown reason looked up to him. Him, Tsume. A broken down wolf with nothing but alcoholism and regrets. And this kid looked up to him. Almost without even realizing it, he had spun the bike back around and was gunning it for all it was worth. Without even stopping and thinking about what he was about to do, he popped the cap on the gas tank of the bike, took out a shop rag and stuffed it in, and replaced the cap to hold the rag in. He pulls out a zippo, lights it, and catches the rag on fire. He gives a loud long howl as he barrels down the street, warning the other wolves of what was to come. As he came up onto the scene, he jumped up and placed his feet on the seat of the bike, riding it surfboard style, all while gunning the gas. As he got closer to the parked military vehicles, he yelled, "jump!" At this time, he jumped off his bike towards the gates. The bike had caught on fire at this time and ran straight on into the military vehicles, creating a massive explosion.

* * *

Darkness. All around there was nothing but never ending darkness. He opened his eyes as dust swirled around him. The darkness soon turned into blurry images. As everything came back into focus, he noticed that fire was raging all around him. He lifted his head and looked around him. Bodies of soldiers was laying all over the place. Soon he saw someone running over to him.

"Hige, are you okay?" It was Toboe.

"Oww." That's gonna leave a mark." Hige slowly made his way to his feet. As he tried to steady himself, the world started spinning really fast and he found himself back on the ground again. He tried once again and managed to finally make his way to his feet. He looked around and saw that there wasn't many soldiers left. Kiba and a gray wolf was finishing them off.

"Hey runt, did you happen to get the truck of that license by any chance?" Hige asked with a woozy voice.

Toboe looked at him in confusion for a moment. "What?"

"Never mind." Hige looked around to see if there was anything he could do to help but saw that Kiba had just taken care of the last soldier. Hige shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs.

Kiba ran up to Hige after the last soldier dropped. "Come on you two, we got to get going before more soldiers come."

Toboe ran up to Tsume. "Hey Tsume, why don't you come with us. We can't hide here now. Our only hope is leaving."

"Yeah, and where are you going anyway?" Tsume scoffed.

"Paradise." Kiba replied evenly, his golden eyes boring into Tsume's.

"Yeah, and I guess your little flower maiden is supposed to take us there?"

"Exactly." said Kiba.

"You have got to be joking. You mean to tell me that you actually believe in that fairy tail?"

"I don't know, but Lately, it's getting more dangerous living with the humans what with them hunting us and all." said Toboe. "I just think it would be better than staying here."

"I've made a life for myself here and now you're asking me to give it up? Well you can forget it. Have fun with your little journey kids. I'm outta here." And with that exclamation, Tsume started walking off, muttering something about ruined bikes, when sirens were heard in the distance.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I want to thank fanlover18 for following this story. It means so much having people read iit.**

 **Disclaimer: wolf81 does not own Wolfs Rain.**

"My lord, my lady. The wolves have escape Lowstrom city. Would you like for my men to continue after them?"

A man with long blue/black hair, pale skin, an intense right blue eye with the other eye covered by a patch looked at the advisor that just gave them the news. He then looked over at the golden haired woman sitting across the table from him. "What do you think, my lady Jagura?"

A malicious smile came to the purple lips of lady Jagura. She slowly rose from her chair at the dining table, her calf length golden hair swaying behind her. She turned her violet eyes to the advisor and said, "For now, have your men track them, but stay out of range so that they are not found out. We will wait for the perfect time to strike."

"And when we do, make sure to take the white wolf and the flower maiden alive. You can kill the others for all I care." Darcia said. "Just so long as the flower maiden and the white wolf is unharmed. We need those two essential elements for our plan to prove successful."

The advisor bowed his head. "Yes my lord and lady. Is there any other orders?"

"No. Now be gone." Lady Jagura said.

* * *

Tsume looked back at the other three wolves, who had started making their way across the snowy wasteland, and let out a sigh. He turned around and started making his way toward them and then started running to catch up to them. He made it out of the city just in time to avoid getting shot by the soldiers. Within minutes, he had caught up to them and made his way to Kiba's side who had Cheza riding on his back. The wolves were running side by side at this time. Kiba looks over to Tsume with a wolfish grin.

"Change your mind." he asked.

"No. Just avoiding soldiers. I'll split off at the next town."

"Suit yourself, but I think Toboe will be upset if you do." Kiba said pointly.

"Like I care what that runt thinks." Tsume said heatedly. He left Kiba's side and fell back a few paces. 'Just so I don't have to deal with that smug bastard.' He thought snidely. They ran for a few more minutes when he noticed Toboe had caught up to run with him.

"Hey Tsume, I'm glad you decided to come along. This is gonna be a great journey huh?"

"Not really. I'm only hanging around till the next town so don't get your hopes up."

"Why don't you want to travel with us Tsume?" Toboe asked sadly.

"Because, I hate hanging around idiots. I'd probably throw myself off a cliff after a week."

"But Tsume, don't you believe in Paradise?" Toboe asked.

"No, I don't, and you're a brainwashed moron if you do. It's just some moron's fairytale to give false hope. If there really was a paradise, don't you think someone would have found it by now?"

"Well, I guess. But maybe no pack has been strong enough to make it yet. Maybe it's us that's supposed to find it."

"Yeah right, we have a runt of a pup, little porkey over there, and a guy who is full of shit and has his head in the clouds. This isn't even a pack runt. We just got thrown together trying to get away from the soldiers and police. There's nothing holding this pack or whatever together. Grow up and use a little common sense for once. There is no Paradise and even if there was, we're not the pack to make it there." Tsume's voice was gradully growing louder as he said this until he was nearly shouting by the end of it. Toboe's ears flatened on his head and he backed away from Tsume. His voice did carry up to Kiba, however and he stopped, along with Hige and looked at Tsume. Tsume just glared back.

"What?" Tsume snapped.

"If you don't believe in Paradise, then why did you come with us?"

"Like I told you. Getting away from soldiers."

Kiba just looked at him for a moment and then said, "Whatever you think now, I guarantee you'll think differently later."

"You know one thing I really hate is a smug looking kid that thinks he's got all the answers when he obviously doesn't know jack shit!

Kiba's eyes narrowed slightly, the only outward apperance of his irritation, but wasn't noticed by anyone else. With a calm and level voice, he said, "I don't claim to have all the answers Tsume, but I do know Paradise is for real. And I intend to find it."

"Yeah, and why do you want to find it so bad, huh? Why do you want to spend your life hunting for something that may not even be there? Got an answer for that one smart ass?"

Kiba stared at him for a minute, looking as if he was seriously considering Tsume's words. After a moment he spoke up and said, "I look for Paradise because I have nothing else. It's like a natural born instinct, like hunting. It's always been there since I was a pup." And with those words he turned and started running again. The other wolves, after a moments hesitation, took off to catch back up with him again.

The wolves continued to run for several days with very little rest. Soon, a blizzard had come up on them and they couldn't even see their paws as they walked. The temperature was freezing the wolves even through their thick fur. Tsume caught up with Kiba and, shouting to make himself be heard above the wind, said, "I don't think runt and porkey are gonna make it much longer. We need to find shelter."

Kiba nodded and they split up to look for shelter. After a few moments of fruitless searching, Kiba noticed a cave opening in the mountain side on the right. He turned around and shouted to the others. "This way," he shouted. The others followed him to the cave and, once inside, plopped down on the ground gratefully.

"Man it's cold out there." Toboe sighed as he made himself comfortable against the cave wall. He got a little too close to Tsume when he sat down however because Tsume said, "Get away from me runt. Your a little too close."

"Sorry." Toboe mumbled as he got up and went to the back of the cave. He laid down and tried to make himself comfortable, resting his head on his paws.

After several moments of silence, a growling sound was heard. Everybody started looking around and then finally noticed Hige holding his hand on his stomache with an embarrased expression on his face.

"Heh heh, sorry. I guess I'm hungry."

"It's understandable, It's been several days since we ate anything." Toboe said.

"I can't wait until this weather is over so we can hunt or something." Hige said.

Kiba turns back to them. "The blizzard should be over by morning so we can hunt then. Meanwhile, we should get some sleep." And with that, Kiba curled up near the left side entrance to the cave with his tail covering his nose. Cheza laid against him trying to keep warm. He closed his eyes and was soon drifting off to sleep,

Everyone was asleep except Tsume. he looked around at the sleeping forms. He was playing his and Kiba's argument over and over in his head, trying to understand this blind belief in Paradise. Yes, there was the flower maiden, and for most, that would be proof enough but Tsume was suspicious of the whole situation. He was, by nature, not a very trusting wolf, but even though he doesn't believe in Paradise, he does get a weird tugging on his heart and soul whenever it is mentioned. Tsume heard a noise from the back of the cave and turned towards the sound. He noticed Toboe at the back of the cave shivering. Tsume began to feel a little guilty of snapping at the poor pup earlier. He didn't know why he was so angry. He had been saying for sometime now that a little adventure is exactly what he needed, so why is this pissing him off? He shook his head to clear his thoughts and, making sure everyone else was asleep, he made his way over to Toboe, laying down and curling around the pup to give him as much body heat as possible. Soon after, the pup stopped shivering and went into a more restful sleep.

* * *

Quent Yaiden stopped as Blue started sniffing the ground again. They had been traveling for three days now, tracking the wolves that had escaped the city. Quent took his flask out and took a hearty draught of whiskey before capping it off and putting it back in his coat pocket. As Blue was trying to pick up the scent, Quent took a picture out of the inside pocket of his coat and stood there and stared at it with a mournful expression on his face. It was a picture of his wife Amelia, his son Russe, and the family dog, Blue. Quent stared at the picture for a long moment, thinking about the good times that was his life. Thinking about playing with his son and the love he and his wife shared. He thought about Blue and how she had come to be in their family. She followed Russe home from school one day and Russe spent the rest of the day trying to convince his father to let him keep her. He finally relented and Blue became part of the family. Things were as perfect as it could get until that one fateful day. Quent and Blue were out hunting. Quent was at the same time, teaching Blue to track and she was getting pretty good at it. During the hunting session, Blue's ears perked up and her nose shot into the air. After sniffing the air for a moment, she gave a snarling bark and ran back towards the house. Quent ran after her. Moments later, they arrived back in town only to find the entire town on fire. In fear, Quent ran to his house along with Blue only to find his house on fire. In the smoke and flames, he saw the bodies of his wife and son surrounded by black figures. One of these figures came closer and Quent saw what looked like a wolf eye. In a rage, Quent fired every round in his rifle at the figure. Now he lives for one thing and one thing only. To hunt and eradicate all wolves until the entire species has been wiped out. Barking soon brought him out of his reverie. he looked up and noticed Blue barking in a north eastern direction. Quent took one last look at the picture and , putting it away, grabbed his rifle and followed Blue wherever her nose would lead them. Only one thought crossed Quent's mind. 'Watch out suckers, Quent's coming for you."

* * *

It had been two days since the rest at the cave. The snow had stopped falling and the warm spring sun had brought on a thaw that soon melted the snow. The wolves were making good progress until Tsume stepped wrong and his front right paw came down in a hole made by a gopher or a mole. He was thrown forward and a loud snapping sound was heard followed by a agonizing yelp of pain. The rest of the pack stopped and looked back. When they saw the situation, they made their way back to Tsume.

Toboe ran up to Tsume sniffing at him. "Tsume, what happened. Are you okay?"

Tsume had his eyes squeezed closed and was gritting his teeth (or baring his fangs as it were) in pain. He opened his eyes and looked at Toboe. He then looked down at his foreleg which was now -S-shaped and shooting pain all throughout his body. He looked back at Toboe again.

"Tell me something runt. Do. I. Look. Like. I'm. OKAY! What kind of a stupid question was that? No I'm not okay, I just broke my damn leg. It hurts like a bitch.

Kiba looked around and saw a clearing off in the distance. "Hige, head over there and see if you can find a cave or an old den. Howl if you find anything. Toboe, can you support Tsume's injured side and get him over to that clearing?

"Sure Kiba, come on Tsume." Toboe leaned against Tsume's right side and helped support him as he struggled up to his feet. Tsume limped over to the clearing with Toboe's help and then laid down on his belly, keeping his injured leg straight out in front of him. Toboe laid next to him, looking at him worriedly. Cheza sat down next to Tsume. She put her hand on his head and started stroking his fur, slowly moving down his body until she made her way to his injured leg. Tsume, who doesn't like to be touched, normally would have pushed her away. But the feeling of the pain ebbing away was an intense relief and he just closed his eyes in contentment. Soon an almost purring sound was escaping him as he gave away to Cheza's minstrations. Toboe just looked on the scene in awe. He had never seen such a peaceful look on Tsume's face before.

Kiba, meanwhile, started helping Hige look for shelter. After a half hour of searching, Hige's howl came from the other side of the clearing. Kiba went over to inspect what Hige had found. It was an old bear cave that was no longer occupied and had not been for a long time. The den had two tunnels branching off of it. "Hige, take the right path and I'll take the left. Let's make sure there's no danger.

Kiba slowly started exploring his area, keeping eyes, ears, and nose alert for any signs of danger. after about thirty minutes, he came to the end of the tunnel. It led up to the surface. Kiba slowly poked his head up and looked around. He had popped out of the ground about twenty feet from Tsume and Toboe. Toboe looked over at Kiba and, giving a giggle, said, "whatcha doin' Kiba?" I thought you was supposed to be looking for shelter."

Kiba just stared at him for a moment and then crawled out of the hole, shook the dirt out of his fur, and trotted over to the cave entrance again. He entered just as Hige made his way out of the other tunnel.

"Aaahhh!" Hige screamed and jumped three feet into the air. "How, what, you, how did?" Hige panted and calmed himself down. Kiba just stared at him for a moment and then asked, "What's wrong with you?

Hige looked at the tunnel Kiba had previously went in and then looked at Kiba again. "How did you just appear here when you should have been there?" he said, indicating the tunnel.

"That's because the tunnel I went down went back to the surface." Kiba explained. Kiba rolled his eyes and sighed. "What did you find Hige?"

"Dead end. Not a creature a stirrin'."

"Alright, let's get Tsume over here."

They went outside and over to where Tsume and Toboe were laying. Kiba explained about the cave that they had found. Tsume agreed it would be a better place than any to spend a few days recovering. Kiba assisted Tsume this time and led him to the cave. Once Tsume was settled, Kiba turned to Hige and said, "Hey Hige, how about you take Toboe hunting. He could stand to learn a few things.

Hige gave Kiba a downcast look and said, "Yeah, sure Kiba. Shake a leg runt, let's see what we can find."

* * *

Blue stopped walking and sniffed all around. She was confused. The trail of the four wolves led to this spot and then split off. She was trying to figure out which scents to follow. She sniffed around some more and then decided to go after the two scents that led out into the meadow. She didn't want to trust two wolves in a cave, especially when it seemed like one was injured. She still has the scar from the last time she went after an injured wolf. It almost cost her her life.

She gave a low 'woof' and turned towards the meadow, following the scents towards the meadow. It was such a simple decision, but a decision that would alter the course of the rest of her life.

"Alright runt, keep up. I smell deer this way." Hige took off running in the direction his nose was telling him deer was. Toboe was hot on his heels until his left ear twitched, picking up a noise. Toboe stopped dead in his tracks and turned towards the noise, sniffing the air. He picked up the scent of alcohol, gunpowder, and a wolf or a dog. Toboe continued to stare up the bank, trying to figure out what was there. Off in the distance, he heard Hige calling for him, but he couldn't respond, frozen in fear, when he saw the gleaming fangs of the solid black wolf/dog with the blue eyes as she appeared at the top of the bank. A man came up beside her, brown trench coat, worn fedora hat, rifle in hand, gun pointed towards toboe. Toboe just stood there, shaking in fear. The dog/wolf ran towards him barking and snarling. when she got within ten feet, Toboe squeezed his eyes shut, thinking this was the end. He heard a yelp of suprise and then opened his eyes. The wolfdog was standing in front of him with a suprised look on her face. She slowly backed away, the look of suprise still on her face.

"Blue, what the hell are you doin"? Take that beast out!" Blue was about twenty feet away from Toboe. The man cocked his gun. "You picked a fine time to go soft on me girl. I'll take it out myself." Quent took careful aim, finger slowly squeezing the trigger. Toboe saw Blue run at him again. Just before he could react, Blue jumped at him, raming into him just as the gun went off. There was a yelp of pain as Toboe hit the ground. Suprisingly, the yelp didn't come from him. He looked over and saw Blue laying on the ground, left side with blood pouring out of it. Blue's breath was coming fast with a slight whine of pain in each one. Toboe looked up the hill again at the man who had a shocked look on his face.

"Blue, why the hell did you do that?" He raised his gun again and just before he could fire, a light brown form jumped at him, grabbing the gun and throwing off the trajectory of the shot. The man fell down the bank and came to a stop at the bottom, dazed. Hige threw the gun as far as he could into the woods.

Hige ran down the bank towards Toboe. "Get her on my back, quick." He laid down and Toboe grabbed Blue by the scruff of her neck. She had passed out by this time. He drug her over towards Hige and got her onto his back where her legs were on either side of hige's flanks. Hige then got up and led the way over towards the cave about two miles away.

* * *

General Rainz made his way to the Laboratory where he knew Lord Darcia the Third and Lady Jagura would be, thoughts running through his mind. He had always thought the mission was the eradication of all wolves. To wipe them off the face of the planet as a species. Now however, the Sixth Battalian's orders were to observe and wait. When the time was right, they were to capture the white wolf and the flower maiden. It made no sense to him so he is now seeking clarification. He had now arrived at the laboratory, and gave a light knock.

"Enter."

Rainz opened the door and walked in. He shifted his eyes around and took in his surroundings. There were computers and machines everywhere with power cables and tubes running to them. In the very center, there was a giant glass sphere big enough to house a human and then some. Scientists were running around, getting things ready for an experiment of some sort. The two noble lords were in the center of the room overseeing the whole thing.

As he entered, the two lords turned towards him. "What is it General?" Darcia asked him.

"My Lord and Lady, I came to seek clarification on the Sixth Battalians orders. Is it true that they were supposed to capture and detain a wolf. I though the sole purpose was to eradicate all wolves.

Lady Jagura looked at him in seething anger and would have punished him right then and there but Darcia put a hand on her shoulder and calmed her some what. Darcia looked over at the General and said, "Consider yourself lucky, General, that I consider you a valuable asset. Otherwise, Lady Jagura would have had some fun with you before your untimely demise for speaking so out of turn like you just did."

The General swallowed hard and dropped down to one knee with his head bowed. "A thousand appoligies my Lord and Lady. There was no offense intended. I was meerly seeking clarification as to the mission objectives and protocols so that I may better lead my men and win victory for you my Lord and Lady."

Jagura smiled at this. "You are forgiven this time, but let it happen again, and you will become a test dummy to practice my magic on."

"Yes my Lady."

"Now," spoke up Darcia. "The mission is as you heard. The white wolf of the pack that is being watched by the Sixth Battalian is to be captured along with the flower maiden for our purposes. Those purposes will not be known to you."

"If I may, my Lord and Lady, allow me to bring in the second batallion to back them up. I heard about what happened in Lowstrome and that was at least four platoons and the local police force. It would be my Honor to serve."

"Then so be it. Order your men to move out and, once engaged, seek to flank the wolves and cut off all escape routes. We can not fail at this. There is too much at stake. Am I understood."

"Yes my lord."

"Then you are dismissed General."

With a salute, General Rainz took his leave. At this time Jagura walked up to Darcia and placed her hands on his chest. He looked at her for a moment, then the two indulged in a passonate kiss. Jagura was the first to move away and she smiled up at him. "My Darcia. I just love it when you go all athorative like that."

He smiled down at her and said, "Soon, we shall open our own paradise and leave this wretched world behind us."

* * *

Blue eyes fluttered open. Blurry vision becoming more clear. Blue raised her head slowly and looked around. She saw the bandages on her side soaked in blood and at that time the memories came flooding back. Going after the cinnamon and brown two toned wolf. Stopping the attack when she realized she was attacking a pup. Quent yelling at her. The gun going off. Her pushing the pup out of the way. The horrible pain in her side and then blacking out. now she had no idea where Quent was and could smell four other wolves around her. She looked around and saw four furry bodies. A white one about two inches in front of her. A big brown one pressed against her on the left. The pup on her right. And near the cave entrance, a grey one with an -X- shaped scar on his chest. She noticed that it was now dark outside. It was then she realized he was awake and glaring right at her. She stared back for a moment. He was about to say something when something stired near the white wolf. She turned her attention towards it and saw a girl with lavender hair and red eyes stand up. It was then Blue noticed the flower smell that she had missed before. Her senses were still coming back to her. The girl made her way over to Blue just as Kiba woke up. He looked around and spotted Cheza just as she knelt next to Blue.

"Cheza, be careful. She was hunting us after all."

"It's okay. This one does not preceive her as a threat, but as a friend. She will not hurt this one."

By this time, the other wolves had woken up and were staring at her. She dropped her head self consciensiously. Her head snapped up again when Cheza started petting her. She started rubbing her muzzle and head and then made her way down her neck. By this time, Blues eyes were closed and she rested her head in Cheza's lap, perfectly content. Cheza continued petting her and then softly murmured, "You did not know what you are did you?" Blue raised her head up and looked into Cheza's eyes. "You had no idea that you are half wolf."

Blue's mouth dropped open at this. She tried to back away from Cheza but had nowhere to go. A little whine escaped her. Her mind was reeling at this revelation. She was half wolf. That was why she was so good at tracking them. But if she was half wolf, then that means she was hunting her own kind. She rolled over onto her back in submission and exposed her throat. For the first time in her life, she spoke. "Please, kill me. I don't deserve to live.

"Don't tempt me." Tsume snapped. "That's actually not a bad idea."

"Tsume, you can't mean that." Said Toboe. "She didn't even know she was a wolf, give her a chance."

"Yeah, It can't be that bad, now get up. You don't really want to die." Hige said.

Blue continued to lay there, looking depressed. Finally, Kiba said, "Get up."

After a moment, Blue rolled back over in a laying position. She kept her ears flat to her skull, her head lowered and her tail tucked. Nobody said nothing for a few moments, all four pairs of eyes studying her. Finally, Kiba spoke up and said, "What is your name.

She slowly looked up at him but stayed in a submissive position and said, "My name is Blue."

Kiba looked over at Cheza. "Cheza, if you would please."

Cheza went to Blue's side. She took the bandages off and begin petting her side where the bullet grazed her. Slowly, Blue felt the pain ebbing away. After a few moments, the wound was completly healed. Blue looked at Cheza in wonder.

"There we go, all better." Cheza said.

Blue bowed her head in thanks.

"Come with me," Kiba said and walked out of the cave. Tsume looked at him with a shocked look on his face. "Kiba, you can't be serious. She was hunting us with that old man. She tried to kill us. Remember."

"Yes Tsume, I do." Kiba didn't say another word but continued walking. Blue followed Kiba out of the cave, ignoring the growling coming from Tsume. Kiba went a good distance away from the cave and sat down. When Blue joined him, he was looking up at the moon. Blue sat down a ways away from him and waited. minutes went by and just as she thought there would be nothing said, Kiba spoke up.

"Hige and Toboe told me what happened. Why did you stop your attack on Toboe?

"It was then I realized he was a pup."

"So, you will attack other wolves but not pups?"

"I guess my maternal instincts took over." I didn't want to see that pup harmed."

"And that is why you took a bullet for him?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Your human is missing. Knowing what you do now, will you go back to him?

Blue looked down. Quent was her life. All she had ever wanted was to please him and make him happy. She wanted to go look for him and make sure he was okay but at the same time, she didn't want to hunt wolves anymore. She didn't want to hunt her own kind. She was silent for so long that Kiba turned away from his contemplation of the moon and looked at her. At the movement, she looked up at him into his knowing eyes.

"I want Quent to be okay but I don't think I will ever be able to go back to like I was. I could never hunt my own kind again. I don't even know who I am. Everything I thought was true was a lie. I don't know what to do. But I meant what I said. I deserve death for hunting my own kind."

"No, you didn't even know what you are. You do not deserve to die. I believe we all deserve second chances. The question is, are you going to be a threat to me and my friends.

"No, I'm going to leave very soon."

"Why."

"I don't belong with you. I am not a full wolf. I also don't belong with Quent. I could never do what I have done. I have to move forward and find out who I really am and to atone for my mistakes."

Kiba looked at her, his gaze softening. "I too have made lots of mistakes. you have the right to do what you want to do. Just so you know, we are going to Paradise. It is a place where wolves reign and can run free. It is not a place of joy or misery. It is just a place where wolves can have a future. If you wish, you can join us. We're not a proper pack but there is room for you as long as you're not a threat. We leave in five days. That should give Tsume's leg enough time to heal. The choice is yours." And with that, kiba got up and trotted back to the cave. Blue sat there and thought about the things the white wolf said and contemplated her worth to a pack and her worth in life.

* * *

The next morning, Toboe helped Tsume outside the cave to get some sun. Kiba was laying on a boulder with Cheza by his side. Hige was sprawled out on his belly enjoying the sunshine. Tsume was laying by himself also enjoying the pretty weather. Spring was in the air and that was a time when a pup felt most playful. That explains why Toboe was stalking Hige's tail. Body low to the ground as if he was stalking prey. At this time, Blue came out of the cave. She had been contemplating what Kiba had told her. She was just in time to see Toboe's display. He crept forward inch by inch until he was near Hige's twitching tail. Then, without warning, he pounced, clamping his fangs down on Hige's tail and grabing it with his paws. Hige jumped up with a suprised yelp and turned around, jerking his tail out of Toboe's mouth. Toboe sat there with his head cocked to the side, innocent expression on his face. His tail was wagging furiously behind him.

Hige just stared at him. "Oh yeah, so that's how's it's going to be then runt. I'll show you."

"Uh oh." Toboe squeaked. He turned and ran as fast as he could. Hige leapt after him. "Come back here runt. I'll show you." Soon Hige and Toboe was chasing each other through the meadow. Kiba couldn't help but laugh and even Tsume gave a snicker. Blue was almost rolling with laughter. Hige finally caught up with Toboe and pounced on him, bringing him to the ground. The two rolled until Toboe had Hige pinned. He playfully snapped at Hige's muzzle. Hige Threw Toboe off of him and immediately he was on him and pinned him. Toboe kicked him off and jumped to his feet. The two began circling each other, looking for an opening in thir mock battle. Then, as one, they pounced at each other, playfully growling at each other as they rolled around in the grass. Blue couldn't help but feel a sense of belonging watching the two play. She had always felt she was missing something in her life and now she knew what that something was. It was the sense of family. The sense of family you could only get from your own kind. This made her smile and look up to the sky with the feeling that for the first time in her life, things were starting to finally look up. She locked eyes with Kiba. He had a knowing look on his face. At his unspoken questin she nodded her head. This is what she always wanted. This is the true meaning of happiness.

* * *

Several days passed by for the pack and Tsume's leg was healed enough he could walk on it again. He was outside running around the meadow, trying to get strength back in his leg. The others were sitting outside. Blue walked up to Kiba and asked, "May I talk to you in private?" Kiba looked at her for a minute and said, "Sure." They walked until they were far enough away from the others but close enough that they could be quickly back in the event of danger. Kiba turned to look at Blue and said, "Tell me what's on your mind."

"I have decided that I want to go with you guys. I also think, however, that, given the situation, Everyone should be comfortable with having me around. I think everyone should be asked if they want me here. If there is one person who doesn't, then I will leave."

"That sounds fair. I will get the others." Kiba got everybody together. The whole time they were together, Kiba had never called a meeting. They knew something was going down.

"Alright. The reason for this is because we need to get going, but something has to be taken care of first. Blue has decided to join us on our journey. However, she will only do that if everyone here is comfortable with having her around. We all know the situation. She used to be a wolf hunter. That was before Cheza shined light on her wolf heritage. I believe in second chances so I vote for her to stay. What say you?"

Hige spoke up and said, "I say she should come along. It's gotten boring with only guys around and besides," He said this as he turned to her and gave her a wink. "You are one hot looking babe."

"Blue gave a nervous laugh and said, "Don't think flattery means you're geting lucky big guy."

Hige gave a chuckle. "Can't blame a guy for trying, right?"

"I think she should come along also," Toboe said. "It would be mean to leave her here, especially after she saved my life." Kiba and Hige nodded at this statement.

"This one wants Blue to come along as well. Blue is a friend and will be a great asset to this journey." Blue turned to Cheza and gave a smile. Next it was Tsume's turn. Everyone turned to him expectantly. Blue joining their pack rested on his shoulders and on his shoulders alone. Tsume looked around the pack and then locked a glare on Blue.

"Hell no. I don't trust her. She hunts wolves for pete's sake. How do we know she won't just turn on us. No, if she stays, I'm leaving."

"Didn't you say you were leaving at the next town anyway," Hige asked.

"None of your business Porky. We were all supposed to give our opinion and I say no."

A single tear fell from Blue's eye. "I...understand." She turned around and started walking away.

"That's right, go back to your human. That's where you belong!" Tsume yelled. Blue kept walking although her heart was broke. For the past few day's she finally felt she belonged. She knew she was doing the right thing based on the past but that didn't mean that it hurt any less. "Good luck boys, see ya around."

Hige turned on Tsume. "What the hell Tsume, she wasn't going to hunt wolves anymore. She stopped her old man from shooting Toboe. Doesn't that mean anything to you!"

"I'm sorry Porkey, but it doesn't. Your tail wags anytime there's even a hint that someone of the opposite gender is around. The runt's too trusting and our fearless leader can't keep his head out of the clouds long enough to look at reality. Some one had to be to be the realist here. She could very easily turn on us and maybe even lead us into a trap. I'm not going to let that happen."

"But it's mean leaving her all alone out here. We should have let her come with us at least to the next town." Toboe whined.

"As much as I don't agree with the decision, she did say everyone has to be comfortable with having her around. Tsume obviously is not comfortable with her. We have to just move on." Kiba said. He turned towards the mountains and started running, the rest following him.

* * *

Within two days, the pack was making their way up the first mountain. They were winding up a path carved into the side of the mountain. The path was barely wide enough for the wolves to walk single file in. Hige, for once, was lagging behind, barely in front of Tsume. Every once in a while he would sniff the air. Thinking that he was looking for food, no one paid it much thought. Tsume's leg was almost as good as new by this time. He barely had a limp. It was still giving him some trouble however, and they would have to take frequent breaks to rest it. Tsume had not been in a good mood due to this because he didn't like holding the pack up. They had just started off again with Kiba and Cheza in the lead, Toboe behind him, Hige following close behind him and Tsume bringing up the rear, still not up to full speed. He was walking along thinking about everything that has happened since he started this journey. He knew the others were still upset with him for not allowing the half breed to travel with them. He didn't trust her and that was that. So absorbed in his thoughts was he, that he didn't notice that the ground was getting rough near the ledge. A piece of the ledge under his paw crumbled off causing him to stumble. His back side slid over the ledge. he was scrabbling with his paws trying to get his footing as he felt himself go completely over.


	7. Chapter 7

**a guest reviewed and informed me that ch 7 was a repeat. Sorry about the confusion. I am an idiot**

As Tsume's paws slid off the mountain ledge and into the air, he closed his eyes, thinking that he was going to meet his end. In a split second, his biggest regret was that he hadn't treated the runt better and even felt a slight twinge of guilt about running Blue off. As these thoughts flashed through his mind, he felt the scruff of his neck jerk and his body along with it. After a moment, he opened his eyes to see that he was suspended in the air and no longer falling. He looked up and saw a bit of dark fur. Before he could ponder it, he felt himself slowly going downward and a frightened wimper escape the muzzle of the one who had saved him.

Blue dug her paws into the rocky ledge, her jaws clamped around Tsume's scruff. It was no use. He was just too heavy. She felt herself inching towards the edge. She dug her paws in even more and slowly brought both of them to a stop. She started inching backwards with everything she had, trying to bring Tsume back up to safety, but her strength was about gone. Just as she felt herself start to slide forward again, she felt teeth clamp onto her scruff. She gave a startled grunt but caught herself before her jaws opened.

"Gotcha." Came a voice from behind her. It was Toboe. Suddenly, a light brown muzzle grabbed the scruff on the other side of Tsume's neck, his nose accidently brushing against Blue's. A slight shudder went down her spine at the contact. Soon after, Kiba clamped down on Hige's scruff.

"Okay, everybody start walking backwards," Kiba said around a mouthfull of scruff. Slowly, the wolves started making their way backwards, bringing up Tsume. When they had went a sufficient distance, Blue and Hige gave one last heave, bringing Tsume all the way over. The wolves collapsed, panting, trying to get their breath back. After a moment, they all stood up, all except for Tsume, who was trying to get over the shock of almost falling to his death. Toboe nuzzled him in concern and he finally stood up. When he had regained his breath, he shot a glare over at the black furred, blue eyed she-wolf.

"Are you okay Tsume?" Toboe asked in concern.

"Fine runt." Tsume said. He looked over in Blue's direction. "Why did you do that. Why did you save me. And don't say it was to be allowed into the pack because I stand by my earlier decision."

Blue dropped her eyes. "I just happened to see you go over, that was all. I didn't want to see you die. No matter how much of an ass you are."

Tsume glared at her. "And just why was you following us, huh."

"Tsume, knock it off. She just saved you life in case you haven't noticed." Hige snapped.

"Shut up Porkey. Stay out of this." He turned back to Blue again. "Answer the question, why was you following us?"

"I wasn't. I just happened to be going in the same direction as you, that's all." Blue started to walk away, toward the direction the pack had been heading. "I apologize for being such a bother. I'll be going now."

Tsume stared at the ground as she walked off, contemplating the motivations she had for rescuing him. After a moment, he shook his head and, turing to look at the retreating female's back, said, "Stop right there halfbreed."

Blue came to a stop, but did not look back.

"Where do you think you're going?" Tsume scoffed.

"To the next town. Maybe make a life for myself. Why?"

"Come here." Blue looked back with a slightly suprised look on her face.

"What?"

"I said, come here. Now."

Blue turned and walked back towards him.

Tsume limped over toward her and met her halfway. They stopped when they were a foot apart from each other. Tsume did not look happy while Blue looked apprehensive. They just stared at each other for a moment, then Tsume dropped his eyes to the ground, then looked back into her blue ones.

"I retract my earlier statement. You can stay with the pack."

"Really?" Blue's tail was waging behind her a mile a minute and she was panting happily. Tsume just rolled his eyes. "Just go over there or something, you're making me sick." Blue nodded her head and began walking towards the others.

"Oh, and Blue?" Blue turned back to Tsume, a questioning look on her face.

"Thanks," he said in a barely audible whisper.

* * *

The pack plus their new member traveled for another half a day and finally reached a valley on top of the mountain an hour before sunset. Kiba sent Tsume and Hige to go hunt while Toboe, Blue, Cheza and he looked for a suitable place to spend the night. They soon found a clearing in some trees that was big enough to house the five wolves and flower maiden comfortably, and settled down to wait for the others. About a half an hour later, they heard a howl from Hige announcing their success. Kiba howled back telling them their location. It was over an hour later, when Tsume and Hige drug the bull elk into the clearing. They dropped the carcass and then Tsume stepped back. Hige glanced at him questionly.

"It's your kill Porkey. Pack courtesy dictates you get first bite."

Hige just looked at him in suprise for a minute. 'Since when has Tsume been one for courtesy,' He thought. He shook his head and then walked over to the elk and started eating on a haunch.

"Hey Porkey." Hige looked up as the others made their way to the carcass to begin to eat. "I thought the stomach was your favorite part." Tsume commented.

"It is. But it is also pack courtesy to offer the best part to the alpha. So I'm leaving the stomach for Kiba."

Tsume just gawked at him for a second before beginning to eat his share. Hige didn't seem like the kind of wolf who had spent time in a pack to learn pack customs and ways and everyone knew that he uses his stomach more for a brain than he does with his own mind. He shook his head and continued eating.

Hige looked over and saw Blue hanging back and watching. He tore a huge chunk off of the elk and walked over to her and deposited the meat at her feet. She looked at him in suprise. So did the rest of the pack. Hige never gave food to another. The more he can get, the happier he is.

" You should eat Blue. You'll need your strength what with how hard Kiba pushes us."

"You mean, I can eat with you guys?"

"Why yeah, You're a part of this pack after all."

Blue gave him a smile and nuzzled his muzzle. "Thank you Hige." She then bent down and started eating the meat he offered her. He stood there in shock at the affection she showed for him and remained like that until she was halfway done eating until he snapped out of it. He then went over and continued eating with the others. When everyone had eaten their fill, Hige tore off another chunk of meat and took it over to Blue, considering they had a lot more than she did, and gave it to her as well. He grew nervous and quickly walked away and went to the tree line and layed down by himself, staring into the trees. 'I've never been nervous around a female before. What the hell is wrong with me. She's making me more nervous than a week old pup.' Hige snorted to himself. He tried to relax and go to sleep. He knew he would need it by tomorrow. He felt a presence behind him and the smell of lunar flowers washed over him. He looked over his shoulder and saw Cheza standing there. She smiled and walked up in front of him and knelt down. She slowly started petting his head and neck. Hige's eyes closed in contentment.

"This one sensed your distress and wished to comfort you. Please do not worry Hige. The feeling is mutual."

Hige jerked his head up and stared at Cheza in suprise. "How did you...But I...There's no...Huh?"

Cheza smiled and continued to pet him. "This one can sense the emotions of wolves. She's confused about her feelings too. Don't worry. This one knows things will work out right in the end."

"You really think so?" Hige asked.

"Yes. This one does."

What Hige didn't know is that Cheza would sense Hige having trouble with this. So she also had a talk with Blue before him. "What are you talking about Cheza? There is no way I feel like that. I just met him."

"It is because you knew him from before. This one will not talk about that now. Just know that this one believes it is meant to be. You will just have to make your feelings known whenever you have them."

Now, Blue was looking intently at Hige. She knew the shudder that went down her spine when their muzzles met was from more than the cold. Anytime she thought of Hige, she would get a tingle in her chest and butterflies in her stomach. She knew this feeling was real and wanted to see if he felt the same. 'What's the worst that can happen, Hige says no?' If that happened, it wouldn't be the end of the world. It would hurt, but that would go away in time.

Blue got up and slowly walked up to Hige. His ears wasn't twitching, which meant that he was sound asleep. She laid down beside him and laid her head on his paws. He didn't even stir. She sighed in contentment and closed her eyes, drifting off to a soundless sleep.

* * *

Blue woke up and opened her eyes, trying to find the source of what woke her. She heard wimpering beside her and felt twitching paws hit her side every now and then. Blue looked over to find that Hige was having a horrible nightmare. She laid her head across his shoulders, trying to comfort him, but to no availe. She leaned over and started gently licking his ear and then his muzzle. Hige twitched one final time and then sighed in contentment, settling down into a calmer sleep. Blue looked at him as he lay there sleeping. 'How can I have a calming effect on him in his sleep? We don't even know each other. How can he feel that way about me? Maybe Cheza was right. Maybe it is meant to be.' Suddenly, Hige's eyes fluttered open. He looked up at her and his tail wagged some.

"Good morning beautiful." He suddenly gulped. "I mean, please don't be offended. Not that I think you're offended, because you really are beautiful, but I meant that...Blue got him to shut up by gently licking his muzzle and ear. He froze, not sure if he was dreaming or not. She affectionately nuzzled him and then licked his muzzle again. He gave her a tenative nuzzle and then licked her back. she gave a wolfish grin and her tail started wagging.

"You like me?" He asked.

She answered him by giving him another lick.

"What do you think? I guess flattery works after all." She nuzzled him again and then laid down with her head on his paws. He laid his head across her neck and closed his eyes in contentment.

The next morning, all the wolves were awake and sitting in the middle of the clearing. All except Hige who was sprawled out on his side, still sleeping. Tsume looked over to Hige and had an exaperated look on his face.

"Porkey needs to hurry up and get up. We don't have all day."

Toboe went over to Hige and poked his snout into his side. "Hige, wake up." Hige continued laying there. Toboe tried biting his ear, but to no availe. Toboe put a paw on his shoulder and shook him.

"No, five more minutes." Hige mumble. Toboe put his mouth to Hige's ear and gave a loud bark. Hige jumped up with a startled look on his face. "Damn it runt, you're gonna give me a heart attack like that one of these days.

"Sorry. Kiba wants everyone to meet at the center. So, what were you dreaming about?"

"I was dreaming that the most beautiful wolf in the world showed me she loved me."

"Damn it porkey, is food and females all you think about?" Tsume snapped.

Hige Stretched and walked over to the others, muttering under his breath. "Yeah, I could never be that lucky. What was I thinking? Ain't no way that would happen. Still, it was a good dream though."

* * *

When everyone was awake and ready, Cheza stood in the middle of them. "What this one has to say is not going to be easy. There is some things you will learn and some things this one will never speak about." She closed her sightless eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, there was a determined, if sad, look in her eyes. "It is no accident that you all were brought together. We all came together once before for the sake of paradise." She then went on to tell them a nutshell version of their last life. "And so, Darcia was not allowed to enter paradise because he had so much darkness in his heart. Now we have been given a second chance and this time, this one is confident we will succeed." They all sat there and thought about all she had told them. A lot of questions had got answered but some still remained. Finally, Kiba looked up at her with a thoughtful expression on his face and said, "Cheza, you avoided talking about our deaths. Why? Shouldn't we know what we did wrong so we don't make the same mistakes this time?"

Cheza's eyes grew sad as she said, "This one will not go into those kinds of details. They will only cause fear and pain. This one will say however that our failure was not in lack of strength and determination, but lack in trust. You all started losing trust in each other and also allowed yourselves to be seperated. The only way we are going to succeed as a pack is to stay together as a pack. We must face all of our challenges together. If we are divided, we will fall."

Everyone was quiet as they pondered Cheza's words. Tsume spoke up and said, "Even the half breed was there huh?" He gave a glare at Blue before turning his attention back to Cheza. "Well like I said, once we reach the next town, I'm outta here. You guys will have to do this without me.

"What the hell is wrong with you Tsume?" Hige exclaimed. Didn't you just hear Cheza? She said it will take all of us. You leave now, you're just signing all of our death warrents."

"Get over it Porkey. I don't want nothing to do with this. Next town, I'm out. Got it?"

Cheza looked at Tsume and said, "This one understands. This one will be sad to see you go. This one cannot make you come with us. We will try to do this without you if that is what you wish."

"Yeah, it is." Tsume said.

Hige glared at Tsume and Toboe just sat there, saddened. Kiba's expression didn't change. He knew he had to reach Paradise and he didn't care if he had to do it alone. He was nothing if not determined.

* * *

After Cheza's story, the wolves started off on their journey again. About an hour into it, Blue made her way beside Hige and said," Let's drop back a bit. I need to talk to you."

Hige looked at her, suprised, but nodded his head and they slowed their pace until they were about fifteen meters behind Toboe. They walked in silence for a bit then Blue looked at him and said, "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For accepting me. For wanting me to stay. For being you." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye as she said this. He glanced at her for a moment then looked ahead of him again.

"Well, I'm...ahh...uhh...I enjoy having you with us."

"Why, because I'm a hot babe as you put it."

"One reason, yeah." He looked at her with a grin. "But it's not just that. I mean, yeah. Okay. I've always had a thing for food and girls. And yeah, my tail wags anytime there is a female around. So sue me. That is who I am and I can't change that. But with you, everything is different. I feel like you have to be here. I feel like that we won't be successful without you."

"Is that all. or was there something else."

Hige didn't look at her but stared straight ahead, head and tail drooping slightly. His thoughts going in a thousand different directions. 'Did last night really happen? Was I dreaming? Does she really feel like that about me. Maybe I'm just being stupid.' Unknowingly, he said this last part out loud.

"What do you mean being stupid Hige?"

Hige looked at Blue, startled. "Wha...what?"

"You said you were just being stupid. What did you mean?"

"Uh, well. I had this fantastic dream last night. I was kinda hoping it really happened but I don't think it did."

"Let's see." Blue pretended to think. "You either had a dream about food or a pretty female." I'm gonna guess it was a pretty female or two.

"Just one actually." Realizing what he said, Hige clamped his mouth shut and stared ahead.

"So, who was she?"

"Um, well, uhh, I can't say."

"Why not Hige?"

"Uhh, well I..."

"I see. This is making you uncomfortable. If you don't want to talk about it than I understand. Just so you know, it was a good dream for me too.

"Oh, well that's good. Wait a minute. You mean it was real?"

Blue came closer and gave him a very soft and affectionate lick on his muzzle. "Does that answer your question. Yes, I like you too."

Hige just looked at her stunned. He then grinned and said, "So, where do we go from here?

"I don't know. We'll have to just take it one day at a time. Besides, I overheard you and Toboe talking this morning. Believe me, there is a lot more wolves out there that is way more beautiful than me."

"Even if that were true, none are more beautiful in my eyes."

"How many other females have you used that line on?"

"I've actually used it on only one in my life."

"Oh really, who?"

"A extreamly beautiful wolf. She has fur as dark as midnight under a new moon that has such a deep shade to it you could almost get lost and drown in it. And her eyes are the most unique and beautiful blue I've ever seen before."

"Wha...oh come on, you've got to be kidding."

Hige looks deep into her blue eyes and replies, "No Blue, I'm not. You are the most beautiful wolf I have ever laid eyes on. We haven't known each other all that long but it's almost like I have known you all my life. I'm not just saying this just to say it Blue. But like you said, we have to just take it one day at a time. But I am going to make you a promise right now. I will never leave your side. If we cannot be together, you will be the one making that choice, not me. I will be by your side as long as you will let me."

Blue was so stunned by Hige's words, she didn't know what to say or how to react. 'It's almost like he's telling me he loves me. But you can't fall in love with someone that quick could you?' She had no answer to this and after realizing she had been staring at him, mouth agape since he had spoken, she closed her mouth and stared forward again, trying to come up with a response. Hige gave her a worried glance, afraid he had said too much and scared her. So nervous was he that he started stumbling over his words as he tried to make things right.

"Bl-Blue I'm so s-sorry. I said too much a-and I shouldn't..."

Blue cut him off with a shake of her head and brushed her tail across his shoulder. "It's okay Hige. I just never thought I would be so lucky as to have a guy feel that way about me. It feels good. And I will stay by your side as well, seeing as how that I feel the same way. I have never believed in love at first sight in my life, but, being with you, it feels so right. It feels like I am meant to be by your side. I will always be by your side Hige. I mean that with all my heart. I will never leave you." The two shared a tender muzzle nuzzle and then hurried to catch up with the pack.


	8. Chapter 8

The sun was just sinking over the horizon as the wolves were making their way down the mountain. Toboe was at the back of the pack rough housing with Hige while Blue looked on affectionally. Tsume was walking about five meters behind Kiba in silence. He hadn't spoken a word since the meeting that morning and mainly stayed off to himself. Kiba, who was in the lead, was lost in his own thoughts. His mind was all over the place. He didn't understand why Tsume, after hearing all Cheza had said, still didn't believe in Paradise and didn't want to help them. It just didn't make any sense. His mind then drifted to their newest member, Blue. She is a Wolf/dog that hunted wolves to the ends of the Earth with her master Quent. After Cheza shed light on her heritage, she immediately threw her lot in with the wolves in their quest for Paradise. She has yet to prove herself but according to her personality, she seems like she would be a loyal member of the pack and a possible motherly figure to Toboe. He was glad that her and Hige is having a good relationship and possibly on their way to becoming mates. Neither one of them knows it, but Kiba had been awake and saw their exchange the night before. It made him glad that Hige, with his memory loss, and Blue, with her bad past and regrets, would be there for each other and bring each other comfort and happiness. Toboe, however, was still too young for all this traveling in Kiba's mind. He had no doubt that Toboe would make an asset to this pack, but with the way they were having to move, it was too hard on the pup. But still, Cheza wanted him around. She said that he had traveled with them in the past life and even wound up saving them. She didn't mention from what and they had never asked what with more important things on their mind at the time. As Kiba thought about Toboe, he couldn't help but to think back to that day in Leara's house, when Toboe had been laying before them dying, and he had hazed out. He still couldn't understand what had happened. Hige said when he hazed out, Cheza's hand glowed brighter and Toboe was healed from the life threatening infection. Before that, there was nothing Cheza's power could do for the poor pup. It had something to do with him but he just didn't know what. And if it really had something to do with him, then what about this other wolf. Did that really happen? Does that other wolf even exist? So many questions and nowhere to even look for answers. Kiba shook his head, trying to clear and organize his thoughts. Now was not the time to get sidetracked trying to find answers to unanswerable questions. He had to keep focused on the task ahead and that task was leading the pack safely to the next destination. He suddenly tuned in to his environment and heard his pack talking behind him.

"I'm hungry. I hope we can find something to eat soon."

"Shut it Porkey. If I hear another word about food from you so help me I'll..."

"Guys," Toboe interupted. "Please don't fight. It's not gonna help anything."

"Stay out of it Runt," Tsume snapped.

"Toboe's right," Blue spoke up. "Fighting isn't gonna help anything. I must admit though, I'm getting pretty tired."

"My paws feel like their going to fall off," Toboe complained.

Kiba turned back to look at the pack and saw that even Tsume was looking tired. He suddenly stopped and allowed the pack to catch up.

"We're going to stop here for the night. We'll pick back up tomorrow."

"Good," Tsume said. "Maybe now Runt and Porkey will shut the hell up." Tsume walked off grumbling to himself. Kiba looked after him and then turned to Hige. " Hige, take Blue and Toboe and see if you can find some food. return in a couple hours regardless."

Hige nodded and said, ''Come on you two."

"Alright, let's go." Toboe said excitedly. Blue smiled and followed after them. When they were out of sight, Kiba walked over and sat beside Tsume. The two sat in silence for a while, both contemplating their inner thoughts. Finally, Kiba looked over at Tsume and opened his mouth to speak. Tsume cut him off, knowing what he was going to say.

"Don't even say it. My decision is final."

"Why? Why, after what you heard and seen? Why would you discount that and act like it's nothing? I don't think you understand what's at stake here.

"I understand exactly what's at stake. I just choose not to have a part in it. I don't care if we tried to open Paradise in a past life or not. Think about it for a minute. Use your head and think, Kiba. If what Cheza said was true, and we did quest for Paradise in a past life, then what happened? We failed, that's what's happened. If we didn't succeed then, what makes you think we will succeed now? Huh? What makes you think we will be successful this time? Apparently, we got lucky last time and the world was reborn or whatever but we failed Kiba. We failed. Why would I want to put myself through that again? It is a pointless journey and this time will be no different.

Kiba bristled a little bit at Tsume's words. "You heard what Cheza said. We failed because we lost trust in each other and drifted apart. You are already displaying lack of trust and are already wanting to go your own way. We cannot afford to make those same mistakes again. If we do, then we have already failed.

"We already failed last time. I've made my decision and that's final. Next town, I'm outta here. You got that?" And with that, Tsume stormed off and laid down far away from Kiba. Kiba sighed as he watched Tsume walk away. he couldn't understand why Tsume was acting like he was, but he knew that without all of them, they were doomed to fail from the start. Kiba shook his head. It seemed like nothing would convince Tsume to stay with them and this disheartened him. There was a reason that Cheza said they would have to stay together and trust each other and Tsume just didn't want anything to do with it. Kiba growled to himself and laid down to wait for the others to get back. If Tsume was going to be that way about it then so be it. One way or another, Kiba was bound and determined to open paradise, even if it meant his death. He was not going to fail again.

Blue, Hige, and Toboe returned after a successful hunt, bringing back a decent sized deer. This time not only did Blue eat with the pack, but she got first bite because it was her kill. Hige looked on with pride. "I guess i'm a pretty good teacher. Even the runt did a good job all things considered." After the pack ate, each one fell asleep one by one, until there was only Kiba left awake. His mind was too awake to sleep, thinking about Tsume leaving the pack and potentionally setting them all up for failure. There had to be another way to do this without him. He would have to ask Cheza in the morning. A few moments later, Kiba finally drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Fire. Walls of flames devouering everything it touches like a hungry monster. He ran as fast as he could, trying to escape the seering heat. He jumped over logs and dodged trees, all the while, running his poor legs off. He was still just a pup and couldn't run as fast as a full grown wolf but he had to try. Anything short of success meant his death.

"come on. just a little bit further and we'll be at the river. we'll be safe on the other side." He stopped running when he heard no answer and looked behind him. He heard the flames burning the trees and smelled the acrid smoke. He heard the distressed cries of the rest of the pack who was cut off and was succumbing to the heat and flames and smoke. But he didn't see his childhood companion who had been following him.

"Oh no. Where is she?" Kiba looked around in a panic. 'She was just here.' He ran back the other direction, knowing it was suicide, but unable to leave her behind. Just as he was about to call her name, darkness descended.

* * *

The she-wolf woke with a start, eyes frantically searching around as if expecting to see flames again. That was the third time she had that dream. She was running away from men and flames. The distressed cries of the pack surrounding her. She was running with another pup but could not remember who it was. They got seperated and that was when she woke up. The same way every time. It felt so real, and yet, So familiar at the same time. Was it a memory of the past? She pondered the dream for some time, trying to figure out who the other wolf pup was with her. No mater how hard she thought, she came up wth no answers. Finally, unable to sleep, she got up, stretched, and started moving again, the instinctual calling driving her ever onward. She didn't know what lay ahead of her in this journey, but she hoped it would be worth it in the end.

* * *

Kiba's eyes opened and he lifted his head up with a yelp. He looked around and was calmed by the presence of his pack. He sat there, trying to get over his nightmare and get settled down for sleep again, what with dawn only a few hours away and all. A few moments later, he felt a gentle hand on his head, petting him. He leaned into the contact, calmed as ever by Cheza's presence.

"Was it another nightmare Kiba?" She asked with concern.

"Nightmare or memory. It feels so real, as if it happened in the past. I don't understand why I keep having it though."

"Whatever it is Kiba, it might be important. But this one senses that is not the only thing bothering you."

"you're right Cheza. It's Tsume. He doesn't understand how important it is to stay together. He doesn't want to even help us. He wants to leave as soon as we reach another town. Do you think there is any other way to do this without him?"

"This one does not know. It might be possible, but this one cannot say with certainty. All this one has is this one's memories from the previous life. Things might work out different without him or they might stay the same. This difference might be a good thing or lead us down a path of destruction. This one has no way of knowing. All we can do is move forward."

"Yeah. I just hope we do everything right this time."

"Kiba"

"Yes Cheza," he said, turning to her.

"It is not your fault. Stop blaming yourself. All we can do is our best with what we are given. Do not blame yourself for the past. Only focus on the present and learn from the past. you cannot let the past haunt you."

"I know Cheza. I'll try."

"That is all this one asks.

* * *

The next morning, the wolves and flower maiden was on the road once again. They had decended the mountain and was now coming upon a forest. The wolves ventured into the tree line and continued on. It was night time, the moon had risen high overhead. All were walking in silence, too wrapped up in their own thoughts. Kiba was in the lead, followed by Tsume. Hige and Blue were walking side by side. It wasn't long before Hige started feeling something was off. He looked behind him and noticed that Toboe and fallen way behind.

"Hey Runt, something wrong. Hurry it up or you're gonna get left behind."

"I'm coming," he called as he hurried to catch up to them. Kiba stopped and waited, along with the rest, as Toboe finally caught up with them. He came to a stop, panting. After catching his breath, he finally looked up at them and, with a sheepish grin, said, "Sorry guys, I guess I'm holding you up huh?"

"Naw, ya think. Idiot," Tsume snapped.

Toboe looked sad as he looked down at the ground. "You don't have to be so mean about it," he complained.

"Just learn to keep up, will ya? Otherwise, we'll leave you behind," he said snidley.

"That's enough Tsume," Kiba said in a calm, even voice. "We'll rest here for a while then we will get going again."

"Sounds good to me," Toboe exclaimed."

"I second that motion," Hige put in.

"You would Porkey. Grow up and be a wolf for once." Tsume glared at Hige, daring him to try something.

"You know what Tsume. I'm getting tired of your crap. All you know how to do is make smart ass remarks and always trying to start fights. Why don't you shut your damn mouth for once? Hige growled as he said this and was baring his fangs.

"Why don't you come over here and make me Porkey?" Tsume yelled.

"Guys, please stop. Why do you have to fight all the time."

"Because, Porkey don't know when to keep his damn mouth shut. Just like a certain Runt I know."

"All of you, be quiet." Kiba said.

Everyone stopped and listened for a moment. The only sounds reaching their ears was deadly silence.

"I don't hear nothing," Tsume said with impatience.

"That's just the point guys," Toboe said. "A forest is supposed to be alive with night noises. crickets, whipperwills, and peep frogs. There's nothing. Not a sound."

"Something has spooked them." Kiba stated. "We need to be extra careful. We'll set up watches. I'll take the first watch."

"Fine by me," Tsume said. he laid down and ignored everyone else.

* * *

"Okay men. We have our orders. Secure the white wolf and the flower maiden. We have to take them alive. The rest are expendable. Are we clear?"

"YES SIR," the men said in unison.

"What's the plan Sarge?"

The plan is to set fire to the woods, effectavely cutting off their escape routes. We then seperate the white wolf and flower maiden from the others. That shouldn't be too hard because INTEL said that those two stick together like glue. Once seperated, we hit them with the tranqs. Simple as that. Do you have any questions?"

"NO SIR."

"Alright men, now the wolves are about five klicks north of our position. When we get about a half a klick out, fan out and surround them. We will give it about five mikes once we get into position, then the fire team will set fire to the woods. Teams Charlie and Delta, by this time you will be in position to cut off escape routes. Wait until the fire cuts off all escape routes, then attack. And remember, the flower maiden and the white wolf must be brought in alive or it's our heads. Alright, let's move out."

* * *

A few hours later, Kiba's eyes was drooping with fatigue. He was just about to wake Tsume, when a peculiar smell hit his nose. It was a smell that was all to familiar. The smell of smoke and burning pine trees. Kiba was wide awake now as he shouted at the others. "Guys. Wake up now. We got to get moving."

Everyone was up in a flash. Smoke was rolling over them. Everywhere the wolves looked, there was fire coming from all directions. That was when soldiers appeared. Gunfire was cut lose. the wolves easily dodged the shots. Kiba, Tsume, and Hige stood their ground, trying to fight the soldiers. Toboe and Blue surrounded Cheza trying to protect her.

"Anybody got any ideas, because it's getting pretty toasty here," Hige exclaimed.

"We need to find a way outta here, now." shouted Tsume.

"Kiba, take Cheza and get her outta here. We'll hold them off," yelled Blue.

"What about you guys."

"Don't worry about us," snapped Tsume. "Just get your damn asses out of here! NOW!"

Kiba picked up Cheza, put her on his back, and ran like hell. The other wolves were trying to hold the soldiers off as best they could. Tsume Leapt at the closest soldier and ripped into the part of his throat that was vulnerable under his helmet. Blue and Hige was likewise occupied. Toboe kept dodging the soldiers attacks in front of him, finally knocking him on his back and biting at him. All of a sudden, from behind them, they heard a strangled yelp.

"Kiba!" Toboe exclaimed.

* * *

Kiba ran with Cheza on his back. Flames was surrounding them everywhere. He felt Cheza's grip tighten around his neck as he jumped a fallen tree that was still partially on fire. Kiba continued running, glancing behind him every so often to see if any soldiers were on his tail. He came around a bend and stopped abruptly. He was surrounded by another contigient of soldiers that had lain in wait. Kiba set Cheza on the ground and , shifting into his wolf form, got ready to fight. All of a sudden, he noticed something prick him in the back of his left shoulder. He snarled and yanked it out with his fangs. He was hit two more times causing him to let out a yelp. He turned and saw Cheza hit the ground before the ground rushed up to meet him.

* * *

Toboe was bringing up the rear as they were running to Kiba's position. Bullets were flying all around them as the soldiers attempted to gun them down. there was only five chasing them, the rest having been dealt with earlier. Suddenly, Toboe felt a pain on his back right thigh, and another going across his right side rib cage. He yelped in pain and tumbled to the ground, rolling several times and somehow landed on all four paws. He tried to run again, but his leg gave out from under him. He started trying to get up but noticed several of the soldiers taking aim at him. He closed his eyes and waited for the end.

* * *

Tsume came to a stop and looked back over his shoulder when he heard toboe's cry of pain. He turned around without thinking and rushed back to Toboe's aid. Toboe had rolled back to his feet but fell again. Tsume crashed into the nearest soldier. After knocking him down and finishing him off, he looked around for his next victim. He saw that there was no reason to worry because Hige and Blue had dispatched all the other soldiers. Tsume came up to Toboe who was still trying to get back on his feet. Tsume slung him on his back, still in wolf form, and took off towards Kiba's last known location. Just as Tsume got to where they heard Kiba last, they saw a ship taking off. The last remaining soldiers advanced on them. "Shit, they got Kiba and Cheza! Damn you Jagura!" Hige exclaimed. The fire was getting worse. Tsume only saw one escape route left. "Guys, come on." He took off running toward a wall of flames. He heard Toboe gasp from behind him just as he leapt through, and came out on the other side with nothing more than some singed fur. He continued running until they were safely away form the burning forest. Hige was right on his heels. They came to a stop. Tsume ducked down and Hige helped get Toboe off his back. Tsume dropped to the ground gratefully, sides heaving. He made his way to his feet as he heard Hige say, "Where's Blue?

* * *

Blue was on Hige's heels when she got blocked by a tree that fell in her path. She came to a stop and looked around frantacally. All around her was fire. There was no escape. She went all directions, starting to despair. She wasn't going to make it out. She was going to burn to death. To her left, she started hearing steaming water. She looked over and saw a break in the wall of flames as it came to a stream. Blue didn't think. She just ran to the stream and jumped in. She swam to the other side and got out. She was going to try to run around the flames and catch back up with the others but the flames had started on the other side by that time. She had no choice but to turn around and run frome the fire. She would have no choice but to catch up with the pack later. 'I love you Hige. You and the guys stay safe.

* * *

"Blue! Blue!" Hige was running around trying to find Blue. It had been hours since the fire had finally gone out and he had been trying to find Blue since. The poor guy was in a panic. Toboe had tried to comfort him but Hige was in too much of a panic. He was running around trying to find Blue or at least pick up on her scent. He was at the same time, trying to pick up on Kiba and Cheza's scent as well. It was no use. The fire had burned all the scents away. All he could pick up on was the smell of burned pine and cedar, as well as the smell of smoke and ashes. He shifted to his human form to move some burned trees out of his way. He sniffed at the air again and then fell to his knees in despair. Tsume walked up to him and with uncharacteristic kindness, put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Porkey. I can't pick up on none of their scents either. But keep your chin up. If anything would have happened to either one of them, we would have felt it. We will find Blue, Kiba and Cheza. I swear it. Right now, we need to get back to the Runt and get outta here."

Hige only nodded his head. He got back to his feet and, turning to Tsume, asked, "You want me to carry the Runt now?"

"If you want to. We'll take turns."

Hige nodded and started making his way back to Toboe with Tsume following. Soon, they got back to where Toboe was. He was laying down, trying not to aggrivate his injuries. His leg had stopped bleeding about an hour ago but his side was still oozing blood. He picked his head up when they came back to the clearing but put it down again when he didn't see Blue. "No luck huh?"

"Yeah, you could say that," Hige said dejectally. Hige walked over to Toboe and laid down beside of him in wolf form. Tsume went to Toboe's uninjured side and said, "Okay Runt. Up and at them." He picked up Toboe and gently laid him on Hige's back. Hige carefully got up so as not to jostle Toboe. They then took off, leaving the scene of carnage behind them.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: No I still do not own wolfs rain. Yes it still sucks. No you still cannot Sue me. (Glares at lawyers.)**

 **Special thanks to foxbrush for following the story. It means a lot**

 **Once again, even though it hasn't happened yet, somebody please review. I would like to know what you guys think and if there's any areas I can improve on. It's my first fan fic so I know there is definitely room for improvement. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.**

His sense of hearing. That was the first to comeback. But it sure was slow about it. The sounds that were reaching him sounded like they were coming from underwater. It's like he had come down a very large mountain and he was waiting for his ears to pop. after a while, sounds started to sound more normal. The humming of a generator. The sound of the central HVAC system. The whir of those machines with colorful screens. Humans called them computers or something like that. The sounds of voices. Kiba slowly opened an eye and looked around groggily. He was inside some sort of cage. The bars around him had a wire like mesh over it. He looked around and , finding no one in the room with him at that point of time, went to try to chew the wire off so he could chew throught he bars and get out of there. As soon as his fangs made contact with the mesh, a bolt of electricity shot through him. He was thrown off with a yelp and hit the back of the cage where he was zapped again. He fell to the center of the cage, twitching from the overload of his central nervous system. He laid there, panting and twitching for a moment. Finally, he got up, mindful of the cage walls and looked around again.

"Great," he muttered. "How the hell am I supposed to get outta here with electrified wiring?" Almost as an answer to his question, the door to the room opened and a figure walked into the room. She could be considered beautiful by human standards what with here knee length blond hair and purple eyes and lips. She was wearing gold armor and a red cloak. She had dual swords on her sides and looked like she knew how to use them. she came to a stop in front of Kiba's cage and peered in evily. Kiba raised his hackles and bared his fangs, a snarl coming from his throat.

"Why hello there my beautiful chosen white wolf. So nice to see you," she said in a mockinally sweet voice. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jagura. But you may refer to me as lady Jagura. I am the noble of this region. I'm so glad you and the flower maiden could join us. I have a lot of fun things in store for you."

"Where is Cheza," Kiba demanded. "Damn you Jagura, what have you done with her!"

"Now now. Don't get all huffy with me. I think it's time to bring that attitude level down some. Now, I'm sure you have noticed the specialized collar around your neck. You see, that let's me have all sorts of fun with you. And it also allows me to control you.

"You ain't controlling me you sanctimonious bitch. When I get outta here, I'm gonna enjoy sinking my fangs into your throat!"

"Oh really? Watch this." With a flourish of her hand, she made a motion in the air and spoke some words in an ancient dialect. Kiba felt a shooting pain go through his skull. Then, his vision got hazy. He blinked his eyes and then opened them. The cage door was opened. He tried to run out, but his legs wouldn't obay his commands. He let out a frustrated growl and tried again. Still nothing. He looked up and glared at Jagura with hate in his eyes. She gave a good laugh at his predictament.

"Now come here boy." Kiba walked up to her. "Now sit." Kiba sat down. The whole time, he was not in control of his actions. He glowered at her again. "Now come with me." Kiba got up and followed her out. "Now, I guess you are wondering where we're going. Well you see, I have limited control over you now. I can make you do simple things like any good dog being trained." Kiba's fur bristled at being called a dog, but he continued walking against his will. "Now what we are going to do is get you acclimated to the collar. That way, I will have more control over you and you will have no choice but to follow any order I give you. And after that, I will get some information out of you. Then we shall proceed with your first mission. The anniahlation of your pack."

As Kiba continued to follow her unwillingly, his mind whirled with how he was going to get out of this mess.

* * *

\- 'Gotta keep moving. Gotta keep moving.' That was the mantra that kept going through her head. Blue had been traveling for two days trying to find Hige and the others. She had caught his scent once but lost it not long after that. She had no food and very little sleep since the attack and all she wanted was to find Hige and the others and start making plans for rescuing Kiba and Cheza. She didn't even know if she was going the right way or not. She stopped for what seemed the hundreth time that day and sniffed the air once more, trying to see if she could catch a scent of any of her friends. Nothing. She kept walking for several more hours when she caught a whiff of blood. She sniffed at the air again, moving in the direction of the scent, when she felt something sticky under her paw. She stopped and peered at what she stepped into. It was blood. She carefully bent and sniffed the blood. It belonged to Toboe. He was hurt. She saw a few more drops leading in a south westward direction. She picked up her pace, following the trail. Finally things were looking up. She just had to keep faith that she would find them. She couldn't give up.

* * *

"I'm going to ask you again. What is so special about the flower maiden?" Kiba glared up at her from the blood stained floor, not saying a word. He was on his belly on the floor, a chain hooked to each leg. His legs were streatched out to his sides, not allowing him to move even an inch. The collar was forcing him to stay in his wolf form. Jagura gave a sigh and, pointing to Kiba's back, muttered some words. A small flame sprang up between his shoulder blades. He gave out a pained yelp and small whines escaped him as the fire burned his flesh. Jagura snapped her fingers and the fire went out. Kiba slumped down, eyes squeezed shut in pain, breaths escaping him in small pants, the smell of his burned flesh lingering in the air.

"okay, I'll change my line of questioning. What do you know about the lunar wolf?" Kiba turned a look of confusion on her. "Don't give me that. I have not only got the last few pages to appear in the Book of the Moon, but I have got most of it deciphered. I know that there was a special wolf who was born of the mixed blood of the chozen wolf and the flower maiden and blessed by the light of the full moon. Now, you see, the thing is is that the lunar wolf would be drawn to the chozen one. Now, the wolf who was the chozen one in the last life was named Fang. I would only assume that you are the chozen one because the chozen one is the chozen guardian of the flower maiden. Since the flower maiden and you were found together while the pack was trying to cover your escape, and since your name is Kiba, which means Fang, then that could only mean that you are the chozen one. Now that you have been caught up on everything, why don't we try this again. What do you know about the lunar wolf?"

Kiba glared up at her and said, "I don't know nothing about no lunar wolf. I never heard of such thing until you just told me. And even if I did know anything, I damn sure wouldn't tell you bitch. You won't get nothing out of me so you might as well just give it up."

"Well, that sure is not what I wanted to hear. Well, just know that you brought this on yourself." She went over to a case laying on the table, the only piece of furniture in the room, and removed a whip with three ends on it. On each end, was a little blade. Jagura sauntered over to Kiba, presenting the whip for him to see. "Are you sure you don't want to cooperate with me? It would be so much easier on you."

Kiba eyed her as she walked over to him. "Do your worst. you will get nothing out of me."

"Then so be it," she snarled. She raised the whip and struck Kiba across the back with the whip. The blades sliced into his back. He gave a high pitched yelp of pain as the blades dug into him. Jagura yanked the whip, ripping the blades out of his back, his blood flying out and hitting the floor as she did. She raised the whip and struck again and again a cry of pain escaped him. She struck again and again and again, ripping Kiba's back to shreads. His blood was pooling the floor around him and splattering the walls. His shrill yelps of pain echoing around the room. It got to be too much for him because somewhere in the process, Kiba had passed out from the pain and blood loss. Jagura put a stop to the beating, knowing that there was no sense torturing someone who was unconscience. She whiped the whip off on one of few clean spots left on his fur and returned it to it's case after coiling it up. "Well then, when he recoveres, we'll try again." She walked to an intercom and, pushing a button, said, "Get in here and clean this mess up. I want the prisioner healed. Not fully, but just enough where he will make a full recovery. I want him to bear the scars. Have him ready for interrogation by tomorrow." She opened the door, walked out, and let it close behind her.

* * *

The deer was contentedly munching grass in a field not five miles from the second mountin range. Even though it might have looked defensless, it was anything but. It's ears constantly twitched as it's sensitive hearing picked up sounds in it's environment, constantly analyzing them for danger. It's sense of smell constantly analyzing any dangerous scents. It picked up on the smell of grass, the smell of trees, the sounds of the forest life, but nothing dangerous. It was content in the knowledge that it had two big racks of antlers coming out of it's head. It could cripple any enemy. It may not have been defensless, but it was unaware of the two wolves just down wind from it not even twenty meters away. At a signal, a husky brown wolf slowly made his way to the otherside of the clearing, staying hidden in the trees. He was to get in range for the deer to pick up on his scent and when the deer bolted, was to herd it towards his companion. The deer's head shot up as he caught the scent of the predator, and stood there for a moment as he tried to figure out whether to run or not. The scent came closer and the deer took off, bounding away from the threat. The brown wolf leapt out of the treeline, running after the deer, nipping at it's heals. He steered the deer towards a certain part of the trees on the other side. When the time was just right, a gray wolf bounded out of the trees, straight for the deer's throat. Before the deer could react, the gray wolf was hanging off his throat, fangs sinking into the soft flesh of it's neck. The deer went down, the gray wolf was still holding on, strangling the deer. After a momentm the deer laid still, never to move again.

"Nice take down Tsume. Quick and clean. Good job."

Tsume snorted and then said, "Let's get this thing back to the Runt."

"You got it." They worked together and dragged the deer back to the third member of their little group. When they got there, Toboe's tail started wagging. He was walking now, having had a couple of day's to recover, but was still walking gingerly. He was still having trouble breathing since the bullet that had grazed his side had fractured a couple of ribs. He limped to his companions to meet them.

"Tsume, Hige, you're back." he exclaimed, tail wagging.

Tsume just snorted and Hige said, "Good to see ya Runt. How's the war wounds?"

"They're a little better. Thanks for asking."

Tsume started eating and the others soon joined in not long after. When their meal was done, they started talking about what they were going to do.

"I still think we should go after Kiba and Cheza. They're depending on us."

"Right Runt, but how are we going to find him? Tsume asked.

"I don't know, but we gotta do something."

"Right now, we need to get moving. Are you alright to walk Runt are do you need to be carried again. And don't say you're good so your not a burdon. We help each other." Hige said.

"I can't really put much weight on it."

"That does it. I guess it's my turn to carry you." Hige squatted down on all fours next to him. " Alright, climb on my back." Toboe carefully got on Hige's back. Once he was in position, Hige carefully got up and the group started walking again into the unknown.

* * *

A white and black wolf with brown patches was leading two others on a hunting trip. there was four groups of them and they had to get enough meat for their big pack. the wolf turned his head, stoping to sniff the air for a moment. The moonlight shining on his face, illuminating the burn scars on the left side of his face, his neck, and his shoulder. A distinctive scar was on the high left portion of his chest; an old bullet wound. His left eye is milkey white with blindness. One of the other members of the pack, a sandy brown female with a patch of white over her left eye came up to him. She stood shorter than the scarred wolf for she was still in puphood but close to maturing. She had gone with the hunting party this day to get more practice in. Once she had made her first kill, she would be considered a full fledged hunter.

"Why did you stop Koda? Do you smell something?"

"Yeah, can't you Shay?"

Shay put her nose in the air and took a couple of sniffs. A very light sweet smell hit her nose, mixed with pine and a subtle hint of spice.

"That smells like another wolf, but maybe not full wolf."

"That's right. Keep smelling. My nose doesn't work as good as it used to. There's something else, but I can't tell what it is.

Shay sniffed the air again. "Oh no. It smells like wolf blood." She turned to Koda. "Are we gonna help them?"

"There's only one, but yeah, we're gonna help." He gave a short bark and the other member of his hunting party caught up with him and shay.

"Doss you pokey ass, keep up."

Doss, a chocolate brown wolf with black patches on his fur, lowered his head and tail in submission. "Sorry sir."

"No problem. Now, the situation has changed. There is an injured wolf out here somewhere. Find the scent and imprint it. We're going to split up and find it and see if it needs help."

Doss put his nose in the air and quickly caught the scent. "Got it."

"Alright, fan out, increase spread as we go to cover more ground. If we don't find the wolf in half an hour, I'm going to call the other parties over here for help. I'd hate to do that though because we need the meat. Alright, lets go."

The three wolves fanned out and searched the area, using their sense of smell and visual clues if there was any. About fifteen to twenty minutes into the search, there came a short bark from Shay. Koda and Doss made their way over to her. "I found her guys."

When they got to Shay's location, there laid a black wolf. She was skiny and her ribs poked out of her sides. It looks like she hadn't eaten in days. She had blood all over her. Koda put his nose to her side. He felt a faint heart beat. He put his nose up to her nose and felt faint warm air coming out of her nose. She was breathing.

"Shay, Doss. Get her on my back now. We gotta get her back to the caverans." Doss and shay gently picked the black wolf up and put her on Koda's back. Then they started making the four mile trip back to the underground caverans where their pack lived.

* * *

"Man, this is hopeless," Complained Hige. They still had one more mountain to climb and they were only half way up the one they were on now. Then they had to go through a tree lined valley before finding a town. They were hoping to get information on those soldiers that attacked them. If they could, they could try launching a rescue mission to free Kiba and Cheza. Hige still had not given up hope on finding Blue, but the main priority now, as he had said on several occasions, was to free Kiba and Cheza. He would get a sad look in his eyes when he would say this and it made Toboe sad. Tsume always looked indifferent, but Toboe could see the concern in his eyes no matter how he tried to hide it. They were resting from a day of travel and had just finished eating several rabbits that Tsume had caught. Toboe was walking on his own now but they still had to take it slow. He still had to be carried at times but not as frequently.

Hige looked over at Tsume and asked, "So Tsume. When we get to the town, you still going on your own?" Tsume just ignored the question. He was laying with his back to everybody, staring at the moon.

Hige walked over to him. Before he could get a word out, Tsume interupted him. "I don't feel like talking right now Porkey. Why don't you talk to the Runt?"

"Because. He can't answer my question."

"Well I'm not answering it, so go away."

"Fine, sheesh. It's just one question, how hard could it be," he mumbled as he walked off. Tsume just laid there, staring at the sky. 'Can I just walk away now? After everything that has happened, can I really walk away? I'm actually looking at the Runt like a kid brother for pete sake. Hell, more like a son. When the hell did that start happening? When I thought he was going to die, I felt a sense of loss, like I was about to lose my own family. I haven't felt that since I lost Clutch.' Tsume hadn't thought about Clutch since this journey started. Thinking about him now brought a sense of loss back. It was all he could do to hold back the tears. He suddenly jumped up and started walking.

"Hey, Tsume. Where are you going?" Toboe asked.

"For a walk. I'll be back later." he called over his shoulder.

After two days of "interrogations" Kiba hadn't said nothing. Jagura had brought him to the brink of death several times and he still maintained his silence on the flower maiden and his insistance that he knew nothing about the lunar wolf. Jagura, to say the least, was getting frustrated. She was walking down the hall back to her ballroom, the heels of her armor clicking loudly on the floors, echoing off the walls with an ominious sound. She flung open the doors to her ballroom and stormed inside. She took her helmet off and seated herself at the head of the dining table. A servant brought her dinner to her. Fried wolf stake and a goblet of wolf blood. She looked up at the figure of Cheza floating in the glass sphere of liquid at the other end of the room. She cut a piece of her steak and took a bite. Cheza's eyes got big and filled with tears. Jagura took another bite and Cheza screamed. Jagura laughed as she washed it down with a sip of wolfs blood. Cheza was squirming now, trying to get free. Jagura indulged herself in the torture her dinner was putting on Cheza. After she was finished, she went to her war room. Darcia was there along with General Rainz.

"Ah, my dear Lady Jagura, how good of you to join us." exclaimed Darcia. "We were just about to go over the plans of opening our own Paradise.

"Well unfortunately, my dear Lord Darcia, we cannot even begin that step yet because according to what I learned in the Book of the Moon, we still need the lunar wolf to completely open Paradise."

"Do we still need the white wolf my lady?" General Rainz asked.

"No, he was only to draw the lunar wolf here, but I don't see that happening in the near future. So What I propose is we use the white wolf for our own fun."

"What do you mean fun?" questioned Darcia.

Jagura gave a smile. "Well my Lord Darcia. It's like this...

* * *

"hey, I think she's waking up."

"Shh. Give her some space would ya."

"Sorry. Got excited."

"That doesn't suprise me. You always do where a female is involved."

"Hey, not true."

Slowly she opened her blue eyes. Everything was blurry. She waited for her vision to clear and then chanced glancing around her. She saw several other wolves looking at her. None of them looked or smelled familiar.

She slowly tried sitting up. A wolf with a scarred face leaned his shoulder against her, supporting her. When she finally got to a sitting position, she turned to the wolf who had helped her up. "Thank you."

"No problem. You were hurt pretty bad. What happened?"

"I got split off from my pack. I was trying to make my way back to them but I got attacked by a bear. Before I new what happened, I was knocked down in a ravine. I don't remember much after that."

"Well, looks like you're recovering pretty well. And don't worry. We'll help you find your pack. If they're anywhere in a thirty mile radius, we'll find them."

"I can't thank you enough." Blue looked around her and saw stone and dirt walls. "Where are we anyway."

"An underground caveran. My pack resides here. I know it isn't the great outdoors, but it keeps us alive and the Nobles away from us. Now, do you feel like you can walk? If so, I'll show you where you can eat. You look hungry."

At about that time, a gurgling sound came from Blues stomach. She looked up at Koda with an embarrased look.

"That cinches it. You're going to eat something girl before you expire. Come with me. While we're at it, I'll introduce you to the other two who helped find you"

They walked out of the cave like room they were in and into a vast caveran with dozens of tunnels leading off of it. It was a vaulted room that could house hundreds of wolves comfortably. They walked to the other side of the caveran and through a tunnel that led out into another vast room. There were tables set up with wolves in human form eating. Some wolves were on the ground eating. It was amazing. Blue looked at Koda and said, "I've never seen this many wolves gathered in one area before. especially underground. How did this big of a pack come to be."

"Simple. Most were strays that were taken in who lost family to nobles. Like Shay over there," he said pointing over to a mostly grown wolf pup with a sandy brown coat. "She was forced to watch while her parents and siblings were executed in front of her. We got there in time to save her but not her family. To this day, she is still plauged with nightmares that will never really go away. The one sitting there talking to her is Doss. He was a prisionor of Jagura's. Somehow, he escaped and we found him and took him in. He doesn't remember his family. They died when he was just a pup. Come on, I want you to meet them." He led Blue over to the two wolves. "Shay, Doss, on your feet. I would like to introduce you to Blue, the she-wolf you two saved."

Shay and Doss stood up and gave a wolfish bow. Shay spoke up. " It's good to see you're okay. Wow, I see why they call you Blue. You have the most unique blue eyes I've ever seen."

"Thank you. And thank you for the rescue. Both of you. I owe you my life."

"Nah. It was nothing. Just glad you're still among the living." Doss said.

"Alright. We're gonna get something to eat and then we're gonna have a meeting with some of our best trackers and fighters to see about finding her pack.


	10. Chapter 10

wr chapter 10

It has been almost a week since Jagura's ambush on the pack. Almost a week since Kiba and Cheza was taken by Jagura's forces. This past week has been hard on the pack, especially Toboe. He was still limping badly from the bullet that struck his right hind leg. He was struggling on bravely, but both Hige and Tsume could see that he was struggling to keep up. Tsume didn't have much to say since Jagura's attack. Losing Kiba and Cheza to Jagura's forces as well as Blue getting split off from the group had put him in a more sullen mood than ever. Hige tried to lighten the mood, but after being met with sullen looks from Toboe and Tsume, he finally gave up and grew quiet. The pack had hardly spoke to each other as they traveled. What could they possibly say to one another? Kiba was probably dead or worse, Cheza was in the clutches of the nobles, and Blue was still missing. It was highly likely that she was dead but Hige would hear none of it. Without any clues to go on where to start looking, all they could do was continue traveling in the direction they were going which was up the second mountain.

* * *

'This is stupid,' Tsume thought. 'I'm about ready to say to hell with this stupid journey.' He wouldn't admit it, but losing Kiba had really rattled him. He found himself leading a heart broken Hige and a scared pup. 'I'll bet ol' Porkey will barely be able to eat tonight,' he thought. 'Ever since that half breed disappeared, he's been heart sick.'

He looked behind him and saw that Toboe was starting to fall behind again and his limp had got more pronounced as he was favoring his leg more and more. A few minutes later, they came to the edge of the forest they were traveling through that opened into a clearing at the edge of a cliff. "Alright, lets stop here for the night," he said. Toboe and Hige didn't argue, but instead let out an exhausted sigh as they plopped to the ground.

Tsume soon had a fire going and they all stretched out around the fire in their wolf forms, trying to make themselves as comfortable as possible. Hige looked over at Toboe and said, "Hey runt, hows the leg holding up?"

"I can put more weight on it, so that's a good sign," he said.

"Glad to hear it," Hige replied. Hige sat in silence for a moment and then he got a look on his face that he had adopted whenever the subject of Blue came up. "I wonder how Blue's doing," he said. "I hope she's getting along alright on her own. I really miss her."

Tsume scoffed and turned his back to them. He had become even more sullen than ever in the past week. Toboe laid there staring into the fire, thinking about all that befell them in the past couple of weeks. 'What do we do now,' he pondered. 'Kiba's always led us, despite how Tsume feels about that.' "What do we do now Tsume?"

Tsume was quiet for several minutes, his back turned to the others. Finally, he shook his head and, looking at Toboe, said "I for one am done."

Hige glared at Tsume. "What do you mean your done," he asked incredulously. "Kiba and Cheza's in trouble, not to mention Blue, they need our help. "Yeah," Toboe spoke up. "Kiba would never give up on us," Toboe snapped. "Therefore we shouldn't give up on him. He would do anything in his power to rescue one of us." Tsume looked away, trying to keep his patience with the pup. "And where do you suppose we look? Unless you have picked up on either one of their scents, found a trail, or have any intuition at all on where to go, I would like to know," he said. Toboe just stared angrily into the flames and then sighed in defeat, for he honestly didn't have any idea where to even start. All he knew was that Kiba was probably being tortured or worse right now and he yearned to be doing something to help him. He thought and thought about it until, finally giving up, sighed in defeat. "I don't know," he admited. "I just don't know." He looked around him at the snow covering the ground. Snow that was the same shade as Kiba's fur. He thought for a while longer and then said, "I don't know where to even begin, but we have to start somewhere." "I'm with the runt," said Hige. "Like he said, Kiba definately wouldn't abandon us so easily so we shouldn't abandon him.

Toboe smiled at Hige and then looked at Tsume hopefully. Tsume just stared back at the pup for a minute before turning away completely. He stared up at the sky for a while before contemplating the next course of action. They hadn't picked up Kiba's scent since the ambush, and it was doubtful that they would in the near future.

Tsume looked back at the others. "You idiots don't know when to quit do you?" Tsume spat. He turned away with a humph and stared at the sky past the cliffs edge. Toboe looked at Tsume sadly for a moment then went back to staring into the fire. He moved his leg to a more comfortable position and tried to come up with an idea on how to find Kiba. Hige glared at Tsume for a moment then scooted over closer to Toboe. "Don't listen to him runt, me and you will go and rescue him ourselves if we have to. All we have to do is figure out where Jagura's keep is." Hige said. "How do we do that though, it's not like anybody is going to tell us and we don't even know where to start looking." Hige could tell Toboe was starting to lose heart.

"Well," Hige said, "i think we should go find a couple of Jagura's soldiers and beat a location out of them. What do you say." Toboe looked at him and smiled. "What about Blue," Toboe asked. " She's missing also. We can't be everywhere at once can we?"

"One thing you both are failing to realize," Tsume said, "is the fact that even though Blue is missing, she is out there somewhere but should be safe. On the other hand, Kiba is a prisioner of Jagura and who knows what he's going through right now."

Toboe and Hige both turned to look at Tsume and saw his eyes flashing with determination. "So, heres the deal. I like your idea Porkey, lets find some soldiers and show those bastards what hell really is and teach them that the last thing you want to do is mess with wolves. What do you say?"

"Damn straight!" Hige declaired. "When do we get started?"

Tsume looked at the sky again and said "Tomorrow, we need to get some rest tonight and I think a storm is moving in so we will probably need to find shelter soon." Hige was about to respond when the wind suddenly shifted direction. Hige sniffed the air. What he smelled disturbed him greatly. He continued to sniff the air, attracting the attention of the others. "What is it Hige?" Toboe asked. "Is that," Hige asked. Toboe and Tsume joined Hige as he continued to check the scent in the air. "No way," Tsume muttered. "It can't be," Toboe continued to sniff the air as if he couldn't believe what his nose was telling him." Is that...Kiba?

Then they saw a figure walk out of the woods. A pure white wolf with yellow eyes. His eyes seemed to glow unnaturally and he wore a strange metal collar on his neck. But the thing that startled them most was the lips peeled back baring ivory white fangs in a feral snarl. "Kiba," Toboe asked. "What's wrong with you?" Hige shouted. Kiba squatted down, tensed, and waited for a minute. He than, quick as lightning, sprang into the air, claws extended, fangs bared, and a snarl of rage as he soared towards them with the promise of death in his eyes.

* * *

"Look out!" Hige yelled. He dove right while Toboe jumped left. Tsume, however, jumped towards Kiba and met him in the air. They collided in a flurry of snarles, claws, and teeth. They hit the ground where they went at each other again. Hige was about to jump in and help Tsume, but couldn't because he might accidently hit him instead. He crouched and waited for the right moment.

Not long into the fight, Kiba had two cuts on his left cheek and one starting at his forhead and running over his snout and ending under his left eye. Tsume wasn't faring any better with a gash on his right side and bleeding badly from a wound on his left shoulder. They seperated for a moment and that was when Hige saw his chance. He ran at Kiba, who saw the movement, and turned to face him just as he leapt.

Hige thrust his claws into Kiba's chest, bearing him to the ground. Kiba then suprised him by rolling with Hige's momentum and throwing him on over. Hige hit the ground with a yelp and made his way back to his feet. Tsume leapt on Kiba before he could get up. He wrestled with him, trying to keep him pinned to the ground.

"I don't know what the hell your problem is," Tsume snarled. "But you need to get the hell over it." Kiba continued to struggle, trying to get free, and was able to roll enough to get his fangs on Tsume's left foreleg. He yanked on his leg, throwing Tsume to the ground. In a flash, he leapt on top of Tsume, fangs flashing, going for the death stroke. Tsume closed his eyes, knowing he was about to die.

In a split second, Hige had leapt to Kiba's back, throwing him off Tsume. Kiba landed on his side with a yelp and rolled several times. Hige jumped on him, trying to pin him as Tsume had. Kiba swung his head up, catching Hige under his chin with a headbutt. Hige was thrown back and Kiba lunged at Hige, grabing him by the throat with his fangs, and threw him hard into a tree. Hige hit the tree with a yelp of pain then hit the ground and lay there, unmoving.

At this time, Tsume charged Kiba but Kiba saw the attack coming. Kiba jumped to the side, slashing out at Tsume, ripping his left side open horribly. Tsume hit the ground and slid a few feet, leaving a smear of blood. Kiba tried once again to finish him off but was intercepted by a brown flash. Kiba was thrown on his back but was back on his feet lightning quick. Toboe stood before him, looking scared but determined. "Kiba please," he pleaded. "I don't know what's going on with you, but this isn't the Kiba I know. Please, you have to fight this." Kiba stared at him for a second with a far away look in his eyes. Then he shook his head and looked at him again. "...Toboe?"

"Yeah, it's me," he exclaimed happily. Kiba shook his head again. "Toboe," he said again in a strained voice. "Run, get as far away from me as you can. I don't know how long I can...AAHH!" Kiba screamed in pain and started shaking violently.

"Kiba," Toboe said worriedly. "What is it? What's wrong?" Kiba suddenly stopped shaking, a low, menacing snarl came from him and he slowly lifted his head. Toboe backed up a few steps in fear, for in Kiba's eyes was that unatural glow again. Kiba suddenly lunged at Toboe. Toboe, in fear and panic, dropped on his left side and rolled. It was too late for Kiba to stop his forward momentum. He was sailing right over the cliff that was behind Toboe. He did a miracolous twist in mid-air and just managed to catch the edge of the cliff with his front paws, claws digging into the ground. Toboe lunged at him, slipping his fangs around the strange collar on his neck. Kiba started thrashing wildly, snapping at Toboe.

"Kiba, stop." Toboe yelled through the mouthful of collar. "I'm trying to help you." Kiba continued thrashing and trying to bite at him. Toboe started struggling backwards, trying to drag Kiba back onto the cliff and onto solid ground. Suddenly, the collar gave way, breaking into several pieces. Kiba lost his grip on the cliff face. Toboe lunged again, trying to catch him but to no availe. "KIBA!" he screamed as he watched his friend fall. As their eyes met for the last time, Toboe saw saddness and acceptance in Kiba's eyes.

Kiba plunged down, hitting a ledge and bouncing off on the way down, leaving a smear of blood. He continued his descent, falling about a hundred feet, before landing into a snow drift.

Toboe stood there, staring. He couldn't accept that Kiba was actually gone, dead. He suddenly started sobbing hysterically, screaming Kiba's name again. He started to jump off the cliff, but suddenly was grabbed from behind.

"Let me go, let go!" he screamed. Suddenly he heard Tsume's voice from behind.

"Stop kid, just stop it already. He's gone. He's dead just stop."

Toboe kept struggling until he heard the grief and sorrow in Tsume's voice, something he never heard come from the tough gray wolf before. He turned around, burying his face into Tsume's chest, sobbing hysterically. "I killed him Tsume, I killed him," he kept screaming over and over. Tsume held him for a long time until, slowly, his sobs quieted

"I know kid," he said. "I know, but there's nothing we can do now. It's over."

Toboe looked at him, eyes red, face tear streaked, and said, "We got to at least find him, check and make sure."

Tsume looked at him for a few minutes and then said, "I'm not in any shape right now to be trudging through the snow, Hige's unconscience, and you're leg still hasn't healed. We will look for him, but we need to recover first."

"But Tsume, we got to look for him now. He might die if we don't"

"Think kid," Tsume cut him off abrubtly, "You saw him fall. Does it look like anyone could have survived that." he snapped. Toboe looked like he was about ready to burst into tears again.

"Look kid, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I just...this has been a really shitty day." he said. "Come on, let's go check on Porkey. He took a pretty nasty bump to the head.

"Okay," Toboe said softly. They turned away from the cliff and went to make sure Hige was okay.

* * *

The nightmare was back again. The burning, choking wall of flames. The smell of blood and burned flesh. The sound of the distressed howls of his pack. He was running toward the flames, screaming out someone's name. He couldn't hear the name he continued to scream. It was someone he knew, someone close to him. But he was never able to hear it. the only sound around him was the gunfire, flames, and the cries of his pack as they perished. Yet, he continued to run to the flames, calling her name. Just when he thought he spotted her, he fell and kept falling into blackness. He fell and fell for what seemed like forever. and then, he saw a flash of light.

* * *

His eyes snapped open and he loked around frantically. All he saw was snow all around him. 'That damn nightmare again,' he thought. He tried to make his way to his feet, but fell back to the ground, screaming in agony as pain wracked his body. He lay there, waiting for it to subside. The pain dimmed but didn't go away.

'Okay, think,' he thought. 'Let's assess what is damaged.' He was laying on his left side and he slowly looked over his bloody shoulder at his body. He immediately wished he had not. His ribs looked uneven and one was even poking through his skin.

He quickly looked forward again. He tried stretching out his forelegs and winced when he did his right one. He looked at it and saw it was twisted funny. After trying with his back legs, he realized his back left leg was no better.

'Great, how did I wind up like this?' he thought miserbly, for he honestly couldn't remember. 'If I don't get to shelter soon, I'll die of exposure,' he thought. He tried to get up again, but his body was just simply too battered. He stretched his left foreleg out and, tucking his right hind leg under him, he pulled with his left foreleg and pushed with his hind leg. Doing this caused him to move a couple of feet. 'Okay,' he thought. 'That's an improvement.' He continued to do this until he lost what little strength he had. He laid in the snow, panting, trying to catch his breath. It was then that he started shaking violently, his body convulsing due to the damage done to it. He continued to shake as darkness overcame him.

* * *

The white she-wolf with the black markings stopped to catch her breath, shaking the snow off of her fur as she did so. She still doesn't understand what came over her. She had always been a rover ever since her pack was destroyed by soldiers and flames but this was different. It was like something was pulling her to continue running, like she was trying to find something or someone. She tried to resist the pull at first but it was like an itch that needed to be scratched. She finally decided, 'What the hey. Things happen for a reason don't they?'

Now, after all this traveling, she was getting fed up. What was pulling her all this way. It was like a nagging feeling. She started moving again at a trot. She had traveled no more then an hour when she stopped again. She had caught a scent in the air. A scent she had never hoped to smell again. It was the smell of blood. Wolf blood. She put her nose to the ground and sniffed around. She sniffed the air again and then went back to sniffing the ground. She tracked the scent for the next fourty minutes of so until she came to a large pool of blood. she looked up and sniffed the rock wall beside her on her right. The same scent was up there as well. Then she noticed the blood smear about eighty or so feet up.

'So this is what drew me out here.' she mused. 'A dead wolf.' Regardless, she continued to track the scent, following the trail of blood. Several more wolf scents came to her from at the top of the cliff, but she ignored them. After following the trail for twenty minutes or so, she came across a creature in the snow. She couldn't even tell what color it was it was so covered in blood. She looked around the area, trying to make sure there was no immediate danger, then walked up to the battered, broken wolf who was half buried in snow. She started digging and after a few minutes, had the wolf uncovered. She put her nose to his side and felt for a heartbeat. Strangely enough, it was there. It was soft and shallow, but it was there nonetheless. She remembered a cave about fifteen miles back. 'Damn it Astra,' she chided herself. 'How do you always get yourself in these messes?' She bent down and carefully put her maw on the nape of the wolf's neck, tasting the coppery taste of blood in her mouth, and then began the slow, ardurous process of dragging the wolf to the cave.

* * *

Hige paused in sniffing around at the base of the mountain. He had no luck whatsoever at locating even a whiff of Kiba. He stopped for a moment and, shifting to his human form, streatch his arms and back. He then shifted back to his wolf form and trotted up to Toboe and Tsume.

"Any luck guys."

"Nothing." Toboe said worriedly.

Tsume came over to the other two. His side looked like hamburger. It had finally scabbed over, but was a long way from being healed.

"No luck on my end either. I Say we give it another hour and then be on our way. This was the direction he fell in. If he was still in the area, we should have found him by now."

"Can't argue with you there," Hige said, Toboe looked at him, saddened. "Don't worry Runt," Hige piped up. "I'm not giving up on Kiba. We just need to get moving again. Even if we don't find him, if he's alive, he'll catch up with us. He's a tough bastard, as you well know, so I doubt he's dead."

"How can you be so sure Hige. You didn't see him fall." Toboe said sadly.

Hige was about to respond when he caught a familiar scent. He stood there and sniffed for a moment.

"What is it Porkey?"

"Smells like blood." He continued to sniff the area with his nose only an inch from the ground. As soon as he got to a certain area, the smell was stronger. Hige started to dig, Tsume and Toboe staring at him dumbfounded.

After a moment, he had dug up some congeled blood. He sniff at it again. "Yep, it's Kiba's alright. Only thing is, He's not here. That means he is eather been drug away or he somehow got up and walked away on his own accord. I'm thinking first thing I said. Because if it's the second thing I said, then that means he's more badass than I ever thought possible."

"You see any drag marks?" Tsume asked.

"No, but that doesn't mean that they wasn't there earlier and got covered up. It is still snowing after all.

"Alright, see if we can pick up on which direction his scent goes in and we'll try to track it."

As they headed off again, Toboe was feeling more guilty then ever. 'Please be alive Kiba. Please.'


	11. Chapter 11

**I would once again like to thank the one reviewer I had who informed me that I missed a ch and accidentally repeated a previous one. This is why I ask for reviews. I want to know if I mess up In Any way. Thank you for reading my story so far and I will try to do better about previewing before posting. Please read and review.**

 **Nope. Still don't own it. (Damn it.)**

Astra stood at the mouth of the cave looking out at the snow that continued to fall heavily. It has been two days since she has eaten and was waiting on the storm to blow over so she could hunt. Ever since she found the wolf, she has been questioning her motives for helping him. She was not the kind of person to help another. She has always believed that all creatures should be left to their own devices. To live or die based on their own strengths and weaknesses. After licking the wolf's wounds clean and somehow managing to push the broken rib back down into his body without getting sick, she begun noticing details for the first time. He was pure white. As a matter of fact, he looked just like the white wolf in her dreams. Now there was a coincidence. She didn't know about his eye color because in the two days they have been in the cave, he hasn't opened his eyes. She saw the scars criss crossing his back, a fine indication that at one time he had been whipped or tortured. He was what could be concidered to be a handsome wolf, but Astra was never into relationships. Too much to tie one down. Her only love was whatever trail she happened to be blazing at the time. But despite this, the couple of times she tried to leave, she found out she just couldn't do it. Every time she tried, she would look at him and stop. She couldn't explain why, but she felt a need, a desire to protect this wolf.

'Astra, what has come over you girl?' she thought sarcastically to herself.

A soft whimper from behind her broke Astra from her thoughts. She looked back and saw that the wolf was shaking again despite the fire that was blazing in the middle of the cave to keep the cold out. She walked over to him and laid down next to him, sharing the warmth of her body heat with him. He stopped shaking for a moment and then started trembling and thrashing.

"He's having another nightmare," she muttered. She gently licked his ear and then his cheek, trying to calm him, but to no availe. She softly began to hum a song her Den Mother used to sing to her when she was a pup to help her sleep or ease her fears. She didn't do this with the intention of calming him, not thinking it would work, but to ease her own worry for him. The realization that she was actually worried about him startled her. What is it about this wolf? When she did so, however, he seemed to immediately calm down. He lay still and his breathing calmed to a more normal pace, almost as if her voice had some kind of magical effect on him. She finished the song and lay there a moment longer, staring at her battered companion. Finally, exhausted, she fell asleep.

* * *

For once, the nightmare did not present itself. Instead of fire and death, he stood in a black pit of nothingness. Everywhere he looked, there was nothing. 'This isn't bad,' he thought. 'It could definately be worse.'

Then he began to feel a strong heat that began to envelope him. He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them again. Suddenly, to his horror, he was a puppy again back in those woods. The smoke and heat stung his nose and eyes. The smell of death and blood in the air. Once again, he had no control over his body. He was just a puppet in a play playing out his part. He once again was running to the flames, calling out someone's name. He pushed himself towards the flames, trying to find his childhood friend. She needed his help. 'Wait a minute. Childhood friend? She?' A little more of the story was presenting itself. But before he could take another step, fire seemed to envelope him. He gave a howl of pain and distress as the flames singed his fur. He was in a full blown panic and was struggling to stay alive. Suddenly, everything came to a standstill and time itself seemed to stop. On the winds, he heard a soft, almost celestial voice humming a song. He listened for a moment and then recognized the song. It was a song from his childhood. A song from his past. The voice continued to sing the song and he felt an almost magical sense of peace come over him. He was no longer in pain. He no longer heard the suffering of other wolves. There was only peace and serenity. He closed his eyes and let the song's warmth wash over him.

He opened his eyes and immediately shut them again. The light that hit them was so intense after so long in darkness. He laid there for a moment and then squinted his eyes, trying to let them adjust. He slowly scaned his environment, trying to figure out where he was. There was a fire about ten feet from him. That was when he felt a warm, furry body laying next to his. He slowly looked over and saw a beautiful white she-wolf with unique black markings laying against him, sharing her body heat. He tried to move but whimpered as pain coursed through his body. Feeling the movement, the she-wolf jumps to her feet with a snarl, scanning the cave quickly for any signs of a threat. Seeing nothing, she looks at him and just then notices his eyes slightly open.

"Finally wake up?" she asked. He tries to answer but nothing came out of his mouth but a cough. He winced in pain as the cough aggrivated the injuries done to his body.

"There's some water in that hole beside your head," she informs him. Seeing this, he tries to reach it but he's just too weak. He feels a pressure against him and looks over. She has pressed her side up against him. She nods to him and he nods back. She slowly pushes him closer to the water. He weakly begins to slowly lap at the water until it is almost gone. When he finally feels like his throat and tongue no longer feels like a desert, he stops. She pushes him back where he was. He clears his throat and weakly says, "Thank you."

"No problem," she replies. "What's your name anyway?"

He closes his eyes and thinks for a moment. Finally, he opens them, looks up at her, and whispers, "I don't know."

* * *

"Dead end. Scents gone. Blood trail's gone. Kiba's gone." Hige scratched the back of his head in confusion.

"This doesn't make sense. according to the blood trail, he either dragged himself or was dragged by someone or something. If he was dead, there should have been a body. But it's just like he disappeared." Tsume looked around the area again, just in case he missed something, but he knew he would not find anything. All around him was nothing but snow, snow, and more snow. 'Weird weather for spring time,' Tsume thought. 'It's been snowing for over a week now when it should be fair weather and sunshine.' He turned back to the others.

"Well, he appearantly isn't here so we need to keep moving. We still have another mountain to climb before we can get to the next town. It's possible he may have made his way there." Tsume was just saying this for Toboe's benefit for he truely believed that Kiba had died. It still bothered him why there was no body, but there was nothing he could do to answer that question for now. He had to get them through safely until they reached town. He assumed they would part ways there. Whatever happens, he felt responsible for them now. Strange how things change. At first, Tsume could of cared less about any of them. Now, he was looking at Toboe like a kid brother and Hige. Well, Hige was just Hige, but he still felt bad that he had lost Blue. He made a promise right there and then that he would look out for them until they reached town. After that, he doubted he would ever see them again.

"Tsume?" Tsume noticed Toboe looking at him with concern. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Runt. Let's get moving guys. We got a long way to go yet."

* * *

Braclets clanked as the she-wolf slowly walked through the trees, sniffing the area, trying to pick up on a scent of the wolves that Blue had told them about. Sky blue eyes scanned the area, searching for any signs of movement. She couldn't find anything. She changed her direction of travel and continued searching the area. She had been at this for hours now. She started at the burned out forest where The half wolf, Blue said they were attacked. Blue would have been out here with her searching but her injuries were still severe enough to keep her from looking. She had made her way to the mountain before she finally caught a scent. She put her nose to the air and sniffed for a bit before she picked it up again. She gave a howl to alert the other trackers and seconds later, a howl answered her from one of the other trackers. She started her run up the mountain, praying she would find them.

* * *

A couple of days later, Tsume, Hige, and Toboe was making their way down the third and last mountain. After reaching the bottom of the mountain, they would still have three days travel before reaching the closest town. Right now, they still had another full day of travel before that would happen. Tsume noticed a cave off to the side and told the others that they should stop for a rest. Hige and Toboe nodded and they made their way over to the cave. Once inside, Tsume said he would go hunting. Hige offered to come with him but Tsume told him to stay there and watch Toboe. As soon as he left, Hige turned to Toboe and said, "Hey, is something wrong?"

"I'm fine."

"No you're not Runt."

Toboe glared at Hige for a moment and then looked away. Hige sighed and looked out the opening of the cave. He could see the wind blowing the trees, the snow on the ground and the moon high in the sky. He racked his brain for something to say to comfort the pup but nothing would come to mind. Finally, he looked at Toboe and said, "Look, I know what's bothering ya. I'm not gonna push for you to talk about it, but I just want you to know that if you need someone to talk to, you can talk to me. I don't know how much good it will do, but I'm here for you Runt.

"Thanks Hige. I just don't want to talk about it right now. I mean...I killed him. That's all there is to it. I can't help for feeling guilty about it. I was trying to help him, but he still died." There was tears in Toboe's eyes now. He sniffed and burried his face under his left foreleg. Hige just sat there, leaned back against the cave wall in his human form, wondering what to do. He was never good at comfort. He sighed and scooted closer to Toboe. He reached out a hand and slowly started rubbing his head. He continued to pet Toboe until his whimpers subsided. It felt weird being a wolf and petting another wolf but it seemed to help. He stopped when he heard a noise outside. He shifted into his wolf form and stood ready just in case it was a dangerous enemy. After what happened, he was not about to take any chances. He only relaxed his his stance when the familiar scent of Tsume caught his nose. He walked out of the cave, Toboe, who had recovered from his crying spell, was right behind him. Tsume came over the hill with several rabbits in his mouth, at least two for each of them.

"Alright, food," Hige shouted. He ran over as Tsume dropped the kills on the ground. The three wolves settled down to the business of eating. When there was barely any bones left, They went to the cave.

"I'll take first watch. You two try to get some sleep. I'll wake you in a few hours Porkey."

"Gotcha." Hige yawned and laid down. He was almost immediately sleeping. Tsume shook his head and then went and sat down at the mouth of the cave. Toboe went and joined him after a few minutes.

"What is it Runt?"

"Well Tsume, can I ask you something without you getting mad?"

"out with it Runt. What is it?"

"Well...um...I..." Toboe looked at him nervously

Tsume looked at him with those cold eyes. His eyes soon softened and he said, "This is about Kiba isn't it?"

Toboe looked away with a miserable look on his face for a minute. He then looked back at Tsume. "I was just wandering...well...If you have ever killed anyone before?"

Tsume looked outside of the cave for a moment. Toboe kept his eyes on him while he contemplated whatever was so interesting on the outside of the cave. Finally, Tsume looked at him and said, "Yeah kid. I have."

"Well then, how did you get over it. You know. Not let it change you?"

"Who said it didn't change me?" Tsume continued to look at Toboe in the eye. Toboe looked away from him for a moment.

"What happened was not murder Toboe. It was self defense. You tried to pull him back up. It's not your fault that the collar broke. Besides, who said he was dead?"

Toboe looks at him. "I know you think he is."

Tsume looked away for a moment before looking Toboe in the eyes. "It's kinda hard not to think that kid. But since there's no body, then who knows. If he is alive, then he'll turn up. Right now, we have to do what we can to survive."

Toboe looked at him again and said, "Thank you Tsume."

"No problem. Now try to catch some sleep. You need it."

"Okay, I will." Toboe yawned and then went to the back of the cave, laid down, and promply fell asleep.

* * *

Astra looked at him, shocked. He turned his eyes away from her and stared at the cave wall, the only other thing in his line of vision from where he lay on the floor. He closed his eyes and took several breaths before he opened them and looked at her again. "I don't even remember my own name," he whispered. "I don't know anything. I woke up here in intense pain. That's all I know. I had a dream that I remember. Well, more like a nightmare. But other than that, I don't remember anything. Who am I? Where am I? What was I doing? How did I get hurt. I have so many questions and I asume that the reason you asked my name is because you don't know who I am. Am I correct?"

"That would be correct. I don't know a damn thing about you."

"How did you find me?"

"Crazy and long story."

He looks away. He then looks at his injured leg and looks at his wrecked body. He looks back at Astra and says, "It looks like I have nothing but time. Why don't you indulge me?"

Astra sighed. She sat on her haunches and looked out the cave mouth, contemplating for a moment, then she turned back to him. "Alright, I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to laugh or think I'm crazy. This whole story is gonna sound weird."

"I lost my memory," he said dryly. "It doesn't get anymore weirder than that."

"Good point," she said. She gave a sigh and than started her story. "I have always been a roamer ever since my pack was destroyed. I move around from place to place, just trying to survive. It's been alright so far. Here lately, I came down from up north. I had decided to travel with some traveling humans that live out in the wilds in hide structures. They were very peculiar. Nothing like humans I had seen before. These humans believe in all species being equal. Everything shared and no more value being placed on one over the other. They believed in wolves and welcomed any wolf that needed to stay with them for a while. Their Elder even made mention of a wolf they had raised when his pack was destroyed. This wolf felt a calling, something pulling at him and so he left to search for whatever he was supposed to find. They never saw him again as a matter of fact. Well, ever since I stayed with that tribe, I started having weird dreams. Dreams about fire, wolves howling in pain, Gun fire, and two wolf pups. One of those pups is me. I started reliving the destruction of my pack. The odd thing is, I started having dreams about a white wolf. I would see him standing with a snowy peak in the background. He would look at me with those piercing eyes, as if beconing me or challenging me. I started getting pulled to the south. It's like something was calling me, like an itch in my very soul. After a while, I started traveling west. Eventually I found you lying mostly dead out there in the snow.

Throughout her whole story, Kiba never said a word. He just kept his calm eyes on her, all the while, wondering what would have pulled her to him. What would have tugged at her very being? Was there some connection between the two of them?

"And that brings up the weirdest part. I don't know if this was a dream or a vision or what it was. I saw that same white wolf standing in a human's house. He was surrounded by two humans. One was an adult male and the other was a female child. There was a big brown wolf there as well as a cinnamon colored wolf with bracelets on his leg. He was laying on the floor as if he was dying. There was a weird girl there. Her eyes were red and her hair was lavendar. She had her hands on the injured wolf, a weird light was coming off of them. She was crying. The white wolf suddenly let out a howl that would curl your tail. It was the most amazingly sad howl I had ever heard in my life. It was almost as if this wolf's very soul was crying. It's hard to describe. I couldn't help but give a howl back. A howl that would make him know that everything would be okay. It was,...I don't know what it was, but when I howled to him, I felt a strange energy go through me. And then I felt drained. Even so, I felt like I had accomplished something great. It's too weird to explain."

He happened to notice the markings on her fur at this point of time. They were strange markings to say the least. The way the moonlight that was streaming into the cave was hitting her made it seem like the markings were glowing and the color of her eyes. It was like she held the moon itself in those eyes. He couldn't put his paw on it, but those eyes and markings seemed familiar somehow. She turned to him as she took a break from telling her story, gauging his reaction. He stared at her for a moment and then said, "You want weird? How about this. Ever since I have woken up, I feel like there is something I lost. No not my memory." He glared at her as she held back a sheepish smile for getting caught almost pointing out the obvious. He continued. "It's like I lost something precious to me and I feel like something or someone is calling to me. I keep hearing this voice. It's faint. But it sounds like it's telling me to find something. I just can't make out what." He looked at her and gave a smile. "I guess we're both crazy."

She gave a smile and said, "Well, get some sleep. It's gonna take you a long time to recover. Just keep in mind. Once you're back on your feet, we part ways. I don't travel with company."

He stared at her a moment with those piercing eyes. She supressed a shudder. It was almost like he was staring at her soul, gauging her as an entity, and finding her wanting. He finally gave a nod and laid his head back down and closed his eyes.

* * *

The brown and white she-wolf ran all through the night and on through the morning. The scent was getting stronger. She stopped and sniffed the air again, analyzing all the scents. One of them smelled very familiar but she couldn't tell from where. She started running again, desperate to catch up with these strange wolves. Her run continued on through the evening. She ran up a cliff face so she would have a better view through the valley. As she stood on the cliff, she scanned the area, trying to locate the wolves. At long last, she finally spotted them. She was just about to alert the trackers when she caught another scent in the air. It was the distinct smell of humans. She peered down through the trees and saw human vessels comming from several different directions. the trees ringed the area and came to a stop at the mountain face. The humans had the wolves boxed in. The humans converged onto the wolves and started to attack. The she-wolf gave a warning howl and then started running down the steep slope of the cliff, desperate to help these wolves.


	12. Chapter 12

wr chapter 12

"We're almost at the base of the mountain. We'll find a place to rest for the night when we get down and then set off at first light tomorrow. Hey runt," Tsume turned to call over his shoulder. "How's the leg doing. You seem to be keeping up a lot better now."

"Yeah. It barely bothers me anymore. Thanks for asking." Toboe did seem to be doing better now. He still had a slight limp, but he was walking fine on it. The one on his side had all but healed. He was breathing normal and his ribs had completely healed. "Moonlight sure has amazing healing properties," he commented.

"Hey runt." Hige looked back over his shoulder at Toboe. "What do you want to do when we get to the town."

"I don't know. Find food I guess. I am getting a little bit hungry."

"We'll be hunting later," Tsume commented, keeping his eyes forward as they walked. They continued on for a little while longer and then they reached the bottom of the mountain. Toboe stopped and stared with wide eyes at the beautiful scenery that lay before him. It had been warmer today. The snow had melted, leaving a lush, open meadow before them. Ahead of them, there was a forest that surrounded all sides and met up with the mountain face on either side. "Wow, this meadow is beautiful," Toboe said with an awe filled voice. There was winter and spring flowers everywhere. Most were varieties that could survive the harsh winters and biting cold, but that fact did not diminish their beauty one bit.

Hige took in a deep breath, inhaling the fragerance. He suddenly caught a whiff of something that made his heart jump in his chest. It was the scent of oil and metal. It was also the scent of humans. Human soldiers. Before he could give a warning, they came out of the trees in their mobile carriers and came to a stop. Soldiers dismounted the vehicles and quickly converged on their position, blocking escape routes as they went and surrounded the three wolves.

"Well," Tsume said. "I guess if we have no choice, we'll just have to whoop some of that ass then. Shall we," he said, turning to the others. Hige gave a grin. "Paybacks a bitch." They were both surprised to hear a low growl coming from Toboe. They looked over at him and he was in the ready position, ivory fangs bared, hackles raised. "You took Kiba and Cheza from us. you seperated us from Blue. Now Kiba's dead. You bastards will pay. You will pay with your life!" He continued growling as the soldiers advanced on their position. Tsume and Hige looked at him in concern. They had never seen Toboe so willing to fight like this or so angry. They couldn't think about it now. They had a fight coming up and judging by the look of how many soldiers was sent, it was possibly a fight to the death. Tsume looked at Hige and Toboe again and said, "ARE YOU READY?!" He got growls and nods in reply. Before he could say anything more, a howl came from the distance.

As the soldiers attack the wolves, the she-wolf continued her run down the cliff face. She hit the ground with pounding paws carrying her to the battle. She gave another howl, making sure her pack heard her, and then attacted the first soldier she saw. The soldier aimed his gun at her and fired. She jumped, the rounds smacking the ground harmlessly under her, and twisted her body in mid-air, causing her to barrel roll over the soldier's head. She landed behind him and bit at his ankle, throwing him on the ground. She finished him off by snapping his neck with her fangs. Sensing movement behind her, she jumped in the air, pulling a back flip over the soldier trying to sneak up behind her. As she came down behind him, she landed on him with her chest and front paws, taking him down to his back. She looked up and noticed a grey wolf with a scar on his chest attacking a soldier near her, but he failed to notice the soldier taking aim behind him.

"Look out!" She shoved him out of the way as the soldier fired. She yelped as the bullet grazed her cheek just under her left eye. She jumped the soldier as he fired again, taking him out. She heard a strangled scream behind her and spun around to see the grey wolf taking out a soldier behind her.

"Don't worry about me, just worry about yourself!" he snarled.

"Ungrateful, aren't ya." She retorted.

"LOOK OUT!" they both exclaimed, leaping past each other in opposite directions, taking out a soldier each. They both looked back at the same time, noticing what the other one did. "Thanks." they both said in unison. They both shook their heads and leapt back into battle. The she wolf whirled around, trying to see where she was needed next. She noticed three soldiers menacing a pup. He stood there bravely, teeth bared, growling. One of the soldiers raised his gun, preparing to shoot the pup. The pup leapt to the side, avoiding the bullet, and jumped the soldier. Before he got to him, he was knocked out of the air with the butt of a gun. He hit the ground with a thud, blood poaring out of his head. Just as the soldier was about to finish him off, the she-wolf jumped him from behind, taking him down. She stood between the pup and the remaining soldiers, teeth bared as she stood in protection of the pup. As the pup made his way to his feet, she heard the jingling of bracelets.

Hige snapped at another soldier that had come too close. The wolves were out numbered ten to one and the numbers were starting to have an effect on the fight. Hige's flanks were already dripping blood from the swords each soldier carried. He was lucky he had not been shot yet but he knew it could happen at any moment. He backed off and put some distance between him and the six soldiers he faced. These were what was known as the Elites. They didn't use guns. They wanted to kill wolves up close and personal. Hige was always cautious around Elites. He didn't know how he knew this. Call it instinct or whatever, but he knew that things were going to get bad. The Elites advanced on him and he got ready for the fight of his life when a black blur jumped past him on the right and took out a soldier. A tan blur then jumped by him on the left and took out another one. Next thing he knew, he had two wolves beside him facing down the remaining Elites. He glanced to his right and realized one of the wolves was very familiar looking.

"Blue!?" He couldn't believe it.

"Yes Hige. Catch up later, fight now."

"Yes ma'am." As one, the wolves jumped the Elites, taking them out in short order. The tan wolf who helped them wasn't the only one. There was twelve or so wolves jumping the soldiers, taking them down in short order. He gave another look at Blue before jumping back into the battle, happy that she was alright and was by his side again.

His head jerked up and he let out an involuntary yelp. Astra immediately woke up and looked over at him. He looked outside and noticed that the sun had just went down, the last rays of light shining over the mountains in the background. Night was quickly descending upon them.

"Are you okay?" Astra was looking at him with concern on her face. He Stared at her for a moment, wondering why she was so concerned about him considering when he was better they would part ways. He shook the thoughts away and said, "Yes. I just felt something, that's all."

"What was it. You look like you just lost your best friend."

"I don't know. Something is telling me that something horrible is going to happen. I just don't know what it is." He looked at her and for the first time, she saw a scared look on his face. His injuries, his nightmares, his memory loss. She never saw a change in the stoic expression on his face. But now, he looked positively scared. She didn't know what to make of this. He looked away and took some deep breaths. He still couldn't walk or even stand yet but was able to sit up for short periods of time. After regaining his composure, Kiba looked back at her. He closed his eyes and tried to stop the trembling that assaulted his body. He soon felt a pressure against his neck and shoulder. His eyes snap open and he looks to his side to see that Astra had pressed her muzzle against his neck in comfort. It was then that he smelled a very familiar smell. It was a smell that brought him immeasureable comfort. A floral smell that he thought he should know, but didn't, as well as the smell of pine trees and the slight spicy earthiness of a female wolf. The floral smell for some reason, calmed him and her wolf smell that smelled so familiar bringing him a sense of comfort. He finally allowed himself to relax and rest his muzzle on her neck, returning the contact. After a moment, she drew back and looked him in the eyes with a suprised look on her face. He was so calm now, almost serene. He was the first ot speak.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"Just, everything you've done for me. You find a wolf who apparently should be dead and you not only helped me in recovering, but have stayed here with me. Whatever happens in the future, even if I never see you again, I will never forget you." He laid back down and rest his head on his paws. "I should hopefully be better in about another week. You will probably go your own way then. If you left now, I wouldn't blame you. But, when you do leave, just know that you have made an impact in my life and I will never forget you."

Astra was shocked. She had never had anybody say that before or even care about her. It was why she stayed to herself and stayed out of other peoples business. When she finally gathered herself enough to speak, she heard soft snorts coming from the white wolf indicating he was asleep. She snorted to herself. 'If only he knew me.' she thought. She walked over to the cave mouth and sat by the entrance, staring out into the night.

The pup turned to the brown and white she-wolf with a grateful look, barely able to see out of his left eye with the blood running down his face. "Thanks for the help," he said gratefully. She hardly heard what he said though. The bracelets on his right leg had grabbed her attention. 'No way. No way he's still alive. No way he's right in front of me. It's not possible.' She finally came to her senses when The pup jumped at a soldier behind her. She whirled around and saw two others. She shook her head and launched herself back into the fray with a snarl. She would have to get answers later. Right now, lives were on the line and she had to do her part. Gun fire was going off in the distance and she saw Shay and Doss surrounded. The heavyset brown wolf and the gray wolf were rushing to help them. She saw a soldiers fighting with the rest of her pack. She went to help. She was not letting one wolf die. Not today. Not ever again. She would not lose another pack. She bared her teeth, blood dripping off her cheek and flying off her muzzle as she leapt at the nearest soldier. Today, every wolf would go home. She was about to go after another soldier when she saw a black shape fly by her. She turned and saw the black she-wolf Blue, taking out another soldier. She looked back at her and, with a nod, jumped another soldier. The fight continued this way for several hours without either side backing down. several wolves were down with serious injuries and others were getting them out of there.

Toboe turned his attention to another soldier, baring his teeth. He jumped and took him out. There was just too many soldiers. He was barely holding on. His leg was aching like crazy from the still healing bullet wound and he was barely able to stand on it. He looked around and saw a tan she-wolf with a white spot over her eye about to get sneak attacked by a soldier as she was dealing with another one. He ran with every ounce of strength and energy he had left and jumped, biting and clawing at the soldiers back. The soldier went down with a scream of pain. the tan wolf spun around and was about to attack until she noticed Toboe.

"Thanks for the save. Name's Shay."

"Toboe."

"You look pretty hurt. You need to get outta here and join the others."

"I'm fine. I've had worse."

"Nice scar." she said indicating the healed knife wound on his chest.

"Thanks, I'll tell you the story behind it sometime. You'll hate me after I do though." he said thoughtfully. He looked at her and said, "Talk later, fight now. We need to get rid of these guys."

She nodded and then they started working as a team, watching each others backs as they fought the soldiers. It seemed like an eternity went by before all the soldiers was dead. Toboe stood there panting, aching from new wounds as well as old. Blood was dripping off of him and landing at his paws. shay turned and looked at him. "You okay?

"Yeah, I'll live." He tried to sound cool about it but he winced and stumbled when he tried to walk. Shay supported him until he got his balance back. He turned and looked at her. "I'm fine, really. There's others worse off than me that needs you more. Please help them."

Shay looked at him for a moment. Here was a wolf that could barely continue to stand and just told her to go help others. A true, good hearted, self less wolf. She walked over to him and licked him on the cheek. "You truely are a good wolf." He stood there, stunned at the affection. She gently grabbed him by his left ear and tugged. He lowered his head to get away from her teeth, confused at what he was doing. She started to gently clean the cut on his head.

"I said I was good Shay."

She paused her minstrations to reply. "I know, but you're not going to be worth nothing with blood running in your eye. Let me finish up the cut on your head and then I'll help the others, okay."

He slowly nodded his head and lowered it again. He shuddered at the feeling of her tongue rasping across his cut, cleaning the wound. With every pass of her tongue, the pain would slowly ebb away. All too soon, she was finished. She gave him one more lick, this time an affectionate lick on the neck. He shuddered and looked at her curiously. Then she turned around and went to one of the more injured wolves to help. He looked after her in wonder.

The brown and white blue-eyed she-wolf looked around for anymore soldiers and saw that there was none still standing. She sighed with relief that it was all over. She looked around and noticed Doss being tended to by Sheila. He was watching Shay tending to the pup of the pack they just helped and couldn't help but notice the affectionate lick she gave him on his neck before she walked off to help another.

"Hey Doss. You alright man.

"Just fine Skyla. Did you see that.

"Yeah, I did."

"I hope something comes of that. She's needed some kind of good in her life ever since what happened."

"Yeah I know. See ya." And with that she walked off. She was going to report to the Beta when she noticed moonlight glint off of something in one of the trees. She gave a closer look and saw the barrel of a rifle. She followed where it was aimed and saw it was aimed right at the pup. 'Oh no!' she thought

*Thump-thump*

She leaps forward, hoping she has enough time to get to him. Left ear twitches as it picks up the sound of the gun cocking, a bullet being slid home in the breech.

Paws hit the ground.

*Thump-thump*

Another leap forward. Time seemingly slowing down as she tries to cross the distance between her and the pup.

"LOOK OUT!"

Paws hit the ground.

*Thump-thump*

another leap forward. Left ear twitches as it picks up the sound of the trigger being squeezed.

*Thump-thump*

Paws hit the ground.

One more leap. She sees him turn to her with a wide eyed look on his face as he sees her leap towards him. Sailing through the air, turning her body so her shoulder hits him.

*Thump-thump*

She makes contact just as the gun goes off, sending him sprawling to the ground.

TAT-TAT-TAT.

A three round burst. First one hitting her in the right side of her chest dead on. The bullet ripping through her and tearing out her back, just under her shoulder blade. A high pitched yelp of pain escapes her upon impact. The impact throwing off her trajectory, putting her broadside to the other two bullets. The other two hit her in rapid succession. one embedding itself in her left shoulder and the other one hitting right behind her shoulder, sailing through her, and tearing out her other side. She hits the ground with another yelp, rolling several times and coming to a complete stop.

*Thump-thump*

She raises her head up and sees the gray wolf in human form leaping into the tree that the soldier is in. She turns her head and sees the pup getting up off the ground, staring at her with a shocked look on his face. Her head dropped back to the ground, landing in the quickly spreading pool of blood around her. She had done it. She got there in time to save him. To save her little brother.

*Thump-thump*

Her eyes close. Her breathing gets shallow. She may be dying, but she feels better than she has in a long time. Her little brother was alive. It hadn't all been for nothing. Darkness begins to descend upon her and she lifts her lips in a smile

Thump-thump...thump-thump...thump-thump...thump...

\- 


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Wolf81 (slowly peaks head out from behind imprenetrable barricade.) I...is it safe?**

 **Tsume: Yeah. it's safe.**

 **wolf81: Whew. That was a clo...*WHACK*...OWW! DAMN IT TSUME, I THOUGHT YOU SAID IT WAS SAFE!?**

 **Tsume: Well, it serves you right for not updating in 4 months now doesn't it.**

 **Wolf81: Well that doesn't give you the...okay, you got me there.**

 **Tsume: Tch.**

 **Wolf1: Ladies and gents, I know that you are probably more than a little pissed off at me that I havn't updated in a wolf's age (pun intended). I'm not gonna make any excuses. I know ya'll hear all the time that i had to go to school, i picked up extra time at work, i had a death in the family, life got in the way, etc., etc., etc. The truth is, all of those except school is true for me but that's neither here nor there. I finally got another chapter out woohoo! And for all of those who thought I had abandoned this story, don't worry. I know past experience is a cause for worry, (Insert name of fan fic writer who abanded a story just when it was getting good), but the bottom line is that I planned for this to be a three part story and by God, grannies, george, and anybody else, this story will go until it's completion and nothing short of death will stop me. I mean it. I will not ever abandon this story. even if I get no more likes, follows, or reviews, this story will go until it's completion. Now that I got that off my chest, time to go on with the story.**

 **Hige: 'Bout damn time. My stomaches gnawing at my backbone.**

 **Wolf 81: Ha ha ha. You're so punny.**

 **Hige: Well, not my fault that I'm hungry like the wolf. Ah, wait a minute...**

 **Wolf 81: Damn Hige, your puns are the worst ever (he types with inner voice dripping with sarcasm).**

 **Hige: well ladies and gentelmen, (and especially you ladies. Wink, wink, wink), Ima gonna get some food so I'll howl attcha later.**

 **Wolf81: Damn it Porkey, can the puns already! Can we just let people read?**

 **sounds of crashing, things breaking, and faint wheeping.**

 **Tsume: (brushing hands off). Alright, now that that's taken care of, on with the story.**

He continued moving through the caveran complex as he searched for the one he sought. He was bound and determined to get answers. Some of the things that Hige said just didn't add up. Kiba and Toboe had told him about how he didn't have any memories and about how he knew about the drones in the city. He heard with his own ears about how he knew that the troops that attacked them in the forest was Jagura's the day Kiba and Cheza was taken. How could Hige have such knowledge about Jagura? none of it made any sense and Tsume didn't like when things didn't add up. He didn't like unknown variables and he was gonna get some answers one way or another. Even if he had to beat it out of the pudgy wolf himself. The pack had spent the last few days in the mysterious pack's underground cavern recovering from their wounds that they had received on their journey and from the last fight with the military. within that time, Tsume hadn't heard nothing about the wolf who had first come to their aid, bringing her pack with her. The last he saw before taking that last soldier out was her knocking Toboe out of the way and eating three bullets. Usually he wouldn't care one way or the other; but, unbeknownst to Tsume, he had undergone a lot of changes in the last month or so. What once was a loaner with alcoholism, a bunch of regrets, and a quickly degrading will to live became a grudging member of a pack, an adventurer towards paradise, and even a big brother towards Toboe. He didn't know why, but he felt an urge, an instinct to protect Toboe. No, not just Toboe. The whole pack. Even the Flower Maiden. Tsume gave a huff at this revelation as he continued to look for Hige. In a strange way, he was worried about the she-wolf that had saved Toboe's life. He felt he owed her for protecting the pup but he couldn't help but notice the four bangles on her right front forleg. The same ones Toboe wears. She also is a two toned brown wolf who looks a lot like Toboe. He couldn't help but think that they were some relation or at least at one time was a part of the same pack. The more Tsume thought about it, the more his head hurt.

Tsume shook the thoughts from his head, coming back to reality to realize that he had entered a main cavern that could easily house hundreds of wolves, not the fourty or fifty of the "Caveran Pack" as he's come to calling them. He looked around as he walked, taking in the interactions of the Caveran Pack. He soon spotted a shaggy brown head amongst the pups as he talked to them. Toboe was right there beside them. They were probably telling stories of their adventures together these past weeks. He could see the saddness that still lingered in Toboe's eyes even though he was interacting with the others and had a smile on his face. Tsume could see that the playful glint that used to be in the pup's eyes was gone, replaced by the dim light of sorrow. As Tsume got closer, he started picking up snippets of the conversation.

"...so there was a bunch of these guys in front of me. Like somewhere between six and ten. They didn't have guns like the other soldiers."

"Why's that," asked a female pup to his left.  
"Because these were Elites. They don't like to fight from range. They like to kill their enemies up close and personal with swords.

"Were you scared?" asked another pup further away.

Hige got a solemn expression on his face at that question. "You know, I could lie and say that I felt no fear at all and just annihilated them with no sweat, but that would be a lie. I was so scared I was shaking in my fur. It's one thing to say you're not gonna be scared, but it's quite another to actually face a situation like that and not be. I was terrified. I knew I was gonna die."

Tsume's jaw actually dropped at that statement. Hige was one of the most brash, immature, and annoying people he knew and here he was proving how much he had grown on this journey; not only emotionally, but in maturity also. Tsume shook his head and kept listening.

"So, what happened next?"

"Well, they started advancing on me and the only thing that kept me from running away with my tail tucked between my legs was loyalty to my pack. Yeah, those guys may drive me nuts at times but as far as I'm concerned, we're friends and I would give my life for anyone of them. anyway, I'm getting off track. I got ready to attack and make what I knew was my last stand when all of a sudden, this black blur just flies by me. Before I could react, a light brown blur flies by me on the other side. Next thing I knew, two soldiers fell and I had a wolf on either side of me. I looked left, and there stood that wolf with the white spot over her eye. ...Umm...ahh...

"Shay?" Toboe offered.

"Yeah, that's right. It was Shay." The pups giggled at Hige trying to remember the name. Hige gave a glower and in a mock serious tone, retorted, "Hey, the same woulda happened to you if you was in that situation and had never seen the wolf before. Anyway, I looked to my right, and I saw who that black blur was. At first, I thought I was hallucinating, but then she turned those midnight blue eyes to me and I knew right then that it was one of the missing members of our pack, Blue."

The female pup asked, "Blue's your girlfriend, isn't she?"

"Well," Hige scratched the back of his head nervously, a light colored blush lighting up his cheeks. "I really don't know. We're just taking things kinda slow right now. But I know one thing. Watching her in action is such a beautiful sight to behold. She's like poetry in motion."

The female pup sighed dreamily. "You must be very lucky to have someone like her."

"Yeah, I..." He was interupted by Tsume. "Face it Porkey, you're in love."

Hige glowered at Tsume. "Yeah, so what if I am?"

"Didn't mean nothing by it, just saying. Anyway, you mind if I talk to you a bit.

"Okay." Hey Ru...er, Toboe? Could you watch these guys for a bit?"

"Yeah, sure. No problem Hige."

As Hige got up to go with Tsume, one of the pups piped up, "Hey, Hige?"

"Yeah," Hige asked, turning back around.

"Will you finish the story when you get back?"

Hige smiled and said, "I swear on my tail Shasta. And that's a good promise from me. My tail is one of my best attributes. Besides, a wolf would look funny without a tail now wouldn't he?"

"He he he. He sure would."

Hige gave a laugh and said, "Now mind Toboe while he sits with you guys, alright."

"We will."

Hige turned back to following Tsume while chuckling a bit. "Those pups are just too cute."

"Yeah. You really shocked me Porkey. Didn't think you'd have it in ya to babysit some pups. That's real responsible of ya."

"Well, you know me..."

"Yeah, I know ya."

"Oh, shut up."

Tsume chuckled as they entered one of the side rooms off the main cavern. There were no other wolves around as they were all busy or recovering from the battle. Tsume went to a table in the back and, pulling up a chair, sat down with his feet kicked up on the table. Hige sat across from him. For a while, the two just stared at each other. One was trying to work out what it was he wanted to ask while the other was trying to figure out why he was here. Tsume finally stood up and, taking his leather jacket off, placed it on the back of his chair before sitting down again. He studied the grain in the wood table for a minute before looking up at Hige and started speaking.

"Alright Hige. I need you to be frank with me. In Lowstrom, Toboe said that you knew the drones and what they were capable of just by sound. And in the forest, the day Kiba and Cheza was taken, you knew that those soldiers belonged to Jagura. The last battle we had, you knew that those soldiers you were facing, the ones with the swords; you knew that they were Elites as you called them. Now, the thing is, we know nothing of your past and you have info that no wolf has any right of knowing. just to be clear, I'm not gonna hurt you, nor am I mad. I just want some answers if I'm gonna keep traveling with you."

Hige put his head in his hand and gave a sigh. He thought about what he should reveal. His memory was just a blank but he kept getting, (visions?, flashes of memory?) Yeah, that sounds right. little flashes. He drew himself out of his thoughts and opened his mouth to answer Tsume.

"I really don't know Tsume." He saw the look on Tsume's face and put his hands up defensively. "No, really. I'm serious. Hear me out." Tsume just kept looking at him, but the fire had dimmed down in his eyes, at least momentarily. Hige continued. "About three days before I ran into Kiba, I woke up in a park with a pounding headache. I saw all of these horrible things go through my head at once. And then, just like that, it was gone. Hell, I didn't even remember my own name. I met this she wolf in that city and wound up helping her. She thought it was funny the way my whiskers twitched whenever I would sniff while tracking, so she started calling me Hige, which means whiskers. I guess it kinda stuck. Anyway, the few things that I have remembered thusfar has been triggured by certain sounds or sights. Thats like the city we were heading towards. I kept getting a strange sense of De-ja-vous. Almost like I had walked that path before. But I can't remember any of it.

"The way it sounds Hige, is that you worked for Jagura."

"What! Are you outta your DAMN MIND! I would never knowingly work for that crazy psychotic bitch! The only way that would be possible is if I was being controlled. I'm a wolf for moons sake. You'd really think I'd work for a human, a Noble of all people?"

Tsume's golden eyes remained fixated on Hige who began to squirm under his scrutiny. Tsume studied the big boned wolf for a few moments before leaning back in his seat. He turned his head to the side and fixed his gaze on the cavern wall for a few moments, deep in thought.

"Tsume, look. I know that we all just got thrown together in this by happenstance and that you have no reason to trust me what-so-ever, but just give me a chance man. I swear, I wont let you guys down. I may not be that good of a fighter, but I will do anything I can for you guys so what do you say, huh?"

Tsume fixed his gaze back on Hige for a few moments before standing up. "I need a drink." And with that, he left a dejected Hige behind.

* * *

Astra paced back and forth, her thoughts in a whirl. She kept thinking about when her pack was destroyed. The feeling she kept getting about the white wolf pup just wouldn't stop bugging her. She knew that she shouldn't be letting old memories get to her, but ever since she met this mysterious white wolf, more and more was coming back to her. Stuff she hasn't thought about since she was a pup. Her paws carried her to one cave wall. When she ran out of walking space, she would turn around and walk to the other, lost in thought. on and on like this it went. back and forth. Back and forth. There was something that was nagging at the edge of her mind. Something important. But it just wouldn't come to her. She knew that the injured wolf in the cave with her, the wolf that was in her dreams, and the wolf that had howled to her in the woods was one and the same. She just didn't know what her seeing all of this had to do with her. She also had a feeling it has something to do with what happened to her pack when she was a pup. Finally, she paused in her pacing to look out of the cave mouth at the moon in the sky. For some reason, the moon always calmed her when she was anxious. She sat for a few moments, staring at the moon in a meditative trance. Finally shaking her head, she laid down and tried to get some rest. She knew she was going to need it. Tomorrow, she would hunt so they both could eat. It had been hard enough feeding herself all these years, but it was doubly harder when having a second mouth to feed. espically when the wolf that other mouth belonged to could barely hold his own head upright most of the time, much less eat. She gave a sigh and closed her eyes, slowly letting the world of dreams overcome her.

she opened her eyes to see that she was in the woods. The same snowy, misty woods that she had found herself in when the white wolf had howled to her. She stood there, looking around, trying to find out why she was here again. She perked her ears, hearing the breeze blow through the tree branches. Suddenly, she heard a soft voice on the breeze. A voice that was calling to her by name.

"Astra. This one has been waiting. This one has been waiting for you."

Astra turned in a circle, looking around her in alarm. She sniffed at the air and picked up the faint scent of flowers. She took another careful sniff. No, that wasn't just any flower. It was lunar flower. She perked her ears, listening for the voice again. She waited and after a few moments, she heard it again.

"This one has been waiting for you. This one wanted to meet you in person but was unable to. This one has been captured and taken prisioner by the Noble, Darcia. He plans on using this one to try to open Paradise. But the Paradise that he tries to open will not be pure. The only one who can open Paradise is the chosen wolf. This one asks that you watch over the injured wolf you found. He is the key to helping all wolves reach Paradise. You both are."

"But I don't understand. Who are you? What do you mean we both are? And how do you know me?

"This one knows you because this one is connected to you just like this one is connected to Kiba. The same way Kiba is connected to you and you to him. You were born of the blood of the Flower Maiden and the chozen wolf, Fang from the previous cycle. All along, you were the missing key to Paradise."

Astra stood there for a moment, dumbstruck. How does this mysterious person know all of this? Who is she. And who is...her eyes got big as a memory from her past came back to her. Her and a white wolf pup was playing in a field. She was chasing after him and they were both laughing. Both so care free. She gained on him and then suddenly leapt, soaring through the air. She hit him and they both rolled over and over until they came to a stop. He wound up on his back with her on top. She had her paws on his chest and they just stayed that way, looking into each others eyes. Finally, she looked away from him for a moment, neither one of them moving. she looked back and asked, "Kiba. Will you always stay with me?

He looked up into her lunar eyes with his piercing golden ones and said, "Always. I will never leave you astra. You're my best friend. I've felt a connection to you ever since I first met you." he laughed and said, "and besides. I promised to take you to Paradise, and that's a promise I intended to keep."

She looked down at him with a smile on her face. "Swear to the moon."

"Swear to the moon."

"Swear to the stars."

"Swear to the stars."

"Swear on your pride and soul as a wolf."

"Swear on my pride and soul as a wolf. We will go to Paradise together."

Astra smiled and got off him to help him up. She gave him an affectionate lick on the cheek before leaning her head against his shoulder. "You're the best friend a wolf could ask for."

Astra shook her head. Kiba. No way. No way that the white wolf she found could be the one and the same as her puphood friend. He died when their pack was attacked that night. There is no way that he survived. Right?

"But he did, Astra." Astra gave a startled gasp. She hadn't realized that she had said that last part out loud. The voice continued on. "The both of you have been through horrible things. Have seen horrible things. Both of you have experienced loss. But the one thing that this one knows that you both still possess is an undying courage and determination. You both still have your connection to each other and together, you can achieve great things. Everything you have experience in your lives has been to propare you for the journey ahead. This one believes you can accomplish anything you put your mind to."

"How could he have possibly survived that? And just who are you anyway"

"This one's name is Cheza, the Flower Maiden."

"Flower Maiden?" So Kina wasn't throwing an empty howl after all. "But what about his memories. He lost them. He doesn't even know his name."

"His memories will return overtime. For now, worry about doing what you can to heal him."

"This one needs to rest now. It takes a lot of energy talking over such a great distance. Just remember to rely on your instincts and each other. And remember, you have been blessed by the moon. It has granted you great power. Use that power to help Kiba and to also help others in need. As soon as you can, reunite with the rest of Kiba's pack. You are stronger together than you ever will be apart.

"Wait. What power? How do I use it?"

"Let your instincts guide you. This one must go now and rest. Until we meet again." And with that, everything went black.

* * *

A few hours after talking to Hige, Tsume was back in the mess hall with a six pack sitting on the table in front of him. He was working on his second can of beer when Toboe found him. The pup walked up to his table and sat down in front of him, making himself comfortable. Tsume just ignored him as he continued to slowly drink his beer. After a few moments, the pup got an anxious look in his eyes. Tsume, letting out a sigh, sat his beer down and leaned back in his chair. "What do ya want pup?"

Toboe sits there and fidgets in place for a moment and then, looking up at Tsume, said," I need to talk to you about something Tsume."

Tsume rolls his eyes. "I kinda got that notion runt. Spit it out already."

"Well..."

"That's a deep subject Runt. I sure as hell ain't digging it."

Toboe stared at him blankly for a moment with a confused expression on his face. When he saw the slight smirk on Tsume's face, his eyes lit up with recognition. Soon he started laughing. Tsume gave a light chuckle. "I was wandering how long it was gonna take you Runt."

After Toboe stopped his laughing spell, he finally looked at Tsume and asked, "Tsume, how do you know if you fall in love with somebody?"

Tsume gave him an astonished look and said, "Porkey and the half breed pretty much got their noses stuck up each others butts, there a lot of mated pairs running around here, and you just had to come ask the one who couldn't give three quarts of cats piss. Am I understanding you so far?"

Toboe gave an embarrased shrug. "Yeah, I guess."

Tsume leaned back in his chair, thinking. After a moment, he said, "It's about Spot, isn't it?"

"Spot?"

"Yeah, you know. The one who helped you with that cut on your head."

"Oh. her name's Shay, not Spot. and yeah, it does have to do with her. I mean, I've been around female wolves before and I've never had these strange feelings like I'm having around her. I never had these feelings around Blue or anybody else."

Tsume looked at him for a moment, trying to come up with the right things to say, or at least a way to get out of the situation. When nothing came up, he finally said, "I don't know Kid, why're you asking me for anyway?"

"Because I really value your opinion Tsume. I can't ask Hige because he couldn't give me a straight answer if his life depended on it and I would feel awefully weird talking to Blue about it since she's a female and all."

"What does her being a female have to do with anything?"

"I don't know. It would just feel weird."

Tsume gave a sigh. "Well Runt, the only thing I can figure is that you saved each others lives in that battle and there is an old saw that says that friendship, brotherhood, and love are forged in the fires of war or something like that."

"I don't get it Tsume."

Tsume gave a sigh. He seemed to be doing that a lot these days. "What i mean is you had each others backs during the fight. I saw the two of you. You guys made a good team. I also saw the affection she gave you after cleaning you up a bit. Now that means one of two things. She either likes you or she's just overly friendly. You won't know until you go and ask her."

"I don't know if I can do that. It's not just about if she likes me. I mean, that would be good, but I'm trying to figure out these feelings."

"Well Runt, what do you think about when you get those feelings."

"What do you mean?"

I mean, what do you think about her? Is it more primal or do you feel like you want to spend the rest of your life with her? You also got to think. You only just met here about five days ago. You kinda have to get to know somebody before thinking about love, at least most of the time. Do you understand Toboe?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I just feel like I want to be around her constantly and protect her and make sure she smiles and to let her know that she is loved and never has to be alone."

"You don't think about anything physical do you?" There was a concerned look on Tsume's face as he asked this.

"I don't know what you mean. You mean wrestling or playing in the snow or play fighting?"

"Never mind. You'll find out when you're older. The point is you should go tell her how you feel and see how she feels about you."

"Thank you Tsume. I think you answered my question. As soon as she's not busy, I'll try to work up the courage to go talk to her."

"That's good. now take off. I got some stuff I need to think about."

"Okay. Bye Tsume." And with that, Toboe ran off. Tsume continued staring after him even long after he was gone. His thoughts were in a jumble. Hige having a mysterious past and Kiba missing or dead. Tsume continued to sit there, comptemplating the last few weeks. 'okay, let's see. My life, in a nutshell. I was born into a pack and had a loving father and mother. My pack was attacked by humans and they were all slaughtered. somehow, I survived. I wandered aimlessly for a while until I wound up in Lowstrom. One day, I stole from the wrong person. Instead of killing me, he took me in and mentored me. Clutch pretty much became a father figure to me. I worked in his motorcycle shop for five years. even got my own apartment. One day, some assholes attacked us for reasons still unknown. Clutch took a bullet for me. He died when the shop went up in flames. I became an alcoholic to deal with the pain of loss I have experienced all my life. I closed myself off from everyone and everything just so I wouldn't have to feel that pain again. If I stay away from people and don't let anyone get close, Than I won't get hurt. Five years later, I'm out on a ride and run into a crazy ass wolf who is intent on going to Paradise. Then, the next three weeks of my life has been turned inside out. I am no longer the wolf I used to be. Still don't know how I feel about that. So, what do I do now? Kiba's gone. the Flower Maiden's gone. I said that I didn't even want to go on this damn journey. I've been trying like hell to seperate myself from this damn pack of strays. Tch, maybe I can just stay with this pack. yeah right, like that will ever happen. This damn journey is over anyway. Kiba's gone. Cheza's gone. No telling what to do now. I guess maybe I'll jus...' Tsume was interupted from his thoughts when he felt a hand grasp his shoulder.

"Been a long time Tsume."

Tsume turns his head to see the person behind him. His eyes get as big as saucers.

"No way. I...It's not possible."

* * *

Astra's eyes shot open. She frantically looks around the cave until her eyes land on Kiba's white form. He was still asleep, chest slowly rising up and down in rhythm to his breathing. She watches him for a few minutes as she shakes off the last dregs of sleep. Her nose immediately gives a sniff to the air trying to find the lunar flower smell. Of course, there wasn't a trace of the scent left. She lays her head back on her paws, lost in thought as she tries to figure out the hidden meaning of her dream. She knew that she was right. This wolf that she helped was the very same as her friend from her pack. They had always had a connection so it would make sense that something would draw her to him. She looks over at Kiba again, seeing little things she didn't even think about without knowing what she does now. Such as, when he sleeps alone, he will either tuck his nose close to his chest or wrap his tail around his nose, just like when he was a pup. He tried that once, but wasn't able to due to his injuries. And that brings up another thing. 'How do I use these so called powers that she claims that I have. She said I can help Kiba. I don't understand. she said the power of the moon is in me. That I have been blessed. I'm starting to think I'm losing my damn mind. The only thing I have been blessed with is a life of Hell. But still, she was right about Kiba. I even see that scar running down the lower part on the back of his right front leg. He got that scar when he fell into a river as a pup and a sharp rock cut him open. So if the voice was right about that, who's to say she wasn't right about other things. I don't know what to do to make these so called powers work but I'll try whatever I have to.' Astra walked over to Kiba and gave him a nudge to his muzzle. His eyes slowly blinked open. He slowly started to make his way up to a sitting position, wincing as his damaged body was moved into a new position. Astra positioned her back under his chest to assist him in sitting up. When he made his way to a sitting position, she moved away from him. He was panting a little bit from pain and his lack of strength.

"Kiba, I just had a strange dream or vision or whatever." Astra's tail was swaying side to side in her nervousness.

"Kiba? Why did you call me that.?"

"Alright, you're not gonna believe this, but; let me ask you a question. Have you been having any dreams, maybe about fire. Or two wolf pups maybe?"

As she said this, Kiba got a shocked look on his face. "How do you know this?"

"Because I've had the same dream. The heat from the flames. The smell of blood."

"The sounds of gunfire and bullets whizing through the air," Kiba said, taking over the memory.

"The cries of the pack," said Astra.

"And..." They finish together. "Trying to find my friend."

Kiba looks at her with wide eyes. "You were her. The one from my dreams.

"And you were from my dreams. when we were pups, you told me how we're connected. You don't remember this, but you promised to take me to Paradise."

"Paradise." Kiba sat there in thought for a moment and then looked at Astra. "That word sounds so familiar."

"Kiba." He turned his head at the sound of her voice. "There's a chance that I might be able to help you."

"What do you mean?"

"Lay down and get your weight off your legs." Kiba eyed her for a moment and then slowly laid down until he was partially on his side and partially on his back.. Astra walked over to him and examined his broken forleg. 'Okay Astra,' she thought. 'Use your instincts. supposedly you have some moon power in you so come on girl, get to it.' She stood there, staring at Kiba's injured leg for a while, but no matter how much she concentrated, nothing happened. Kiba finally looked into her eyes and as soon as their eyes locked, she felt her whirling thoughts slow down until she felt a sort of an inner peace. Still looking at Kiba, she felt a surge of energy go through her, almost like adrenaline picking up before a hunt or a fight. She slowly stepped forward and touched her nose to Kiba's leg. She held it there for a moment and concentrated.

"Astra, I don't know what supposed to happen b..." "great moon Astra. You're glowing."

Astra pulled away with a gasp. "I'm what?" You said I'm glowing?"

"Well, you was. Your markings and your eyes were glowing like the moon."

"Well, the voice did say I had some sort of moon blessing."

"What voice?"

"I'll explain later, now let me try again." Astra put her nose against Kiba's leg again, ignoring the painfull flinch he gave at the contact. She concentrated until she felt the power flow through her again. Soon, she saw the bone underneith skin and fur realigning itself until with a pop and a yelp of surprise and pain from Kiba, the bone was reset and healed. Astra was about to pull away when she felt the power continue to draw out of her. almost like being attracted by a magnet, she was stuck to where she was positioned, her body and eyes still glowing with the moons power. The power within her continued making changes to Kiba's body. His ribs started snapping back together, elicting another howl of pain out of him with every pop and crack. His back leg also healed itself and every cut and scrap was no longer there. when the power finally died down and she was no longer glowing, she collapsed to the ground, panting and trying to get her breath back. She looked up and was astounded at the sight before her. instead of the grave injuries she had become used to on the snow white wolf, she saw flawless skin and beautiful snow white fur. Kiba looked himself over with an amazed look on his face before his eyes found Astra again. After getting her breath back, she slowly made her way to her paws. Kiba continued to look upon her with wonder.

"Alright Kiba, try to stand up." Kiba complied and slowly made his way to his paws. He had a look of shock on his face when he realized he was no longer in pain. He paced forward a couple of feet and then spun in a circle and walked a few paces back the other way. He shook himself out and then look at Astra again.

"I don't know what you did, but it seems like i'm all better."

"I didn't recognize that voice, but she told me many things. She said I was born of the mixed blood of the flower maiden and the chozen wolf, Fang. Makes sense now why she said you're important. Kiba means fang. Meaning you're the reincarnation of the original chozen wolf who was supposed to open Paradise."

"This dosesn't make any sense." Kiba said, looking sceptical.

"It's because you have amneisa. When you get your memories back, you'll understand once again."

"Do you know who was speaking to you?"

"I have no idea. All I know is that I smelled lunar flowers. The voice sounded familiar, almost like I had heard it before. I felt a sense of familiarty, if that makes any sense."

"Well, I guess since I'm all better, this is goodbye then, right?"

"Well, I do travel alone." Kiba walks out of the cave with Astra on his heals. Kiba looks off into the distance. "I don't remember anyting so I don't know even which direction to travel in." He looks at Astra with a questioning gaze.

"The closest town is to the west. About two to three days travel. I smelled other wolves near where I found you so maybe, you might be able to meet up with your pack at the next town."

"What is the name of this town."

"Lenings."

"Well Astra, this is goodbye. Thank you, for everything." He walks up to her and gives her a muzzle nuzzle and a lick on the chin. He looks into her eyes for a few moments and then says, "So long Astra, until we meet again." He turns away and starts running in the direction of Lenings. Not far from him, he starts bounding up a rock face that is kinda on an angle, making it more manageable. Astra suddenly feels that inexplicable pull in her heart and soul. Somehow, she appears to be soul bound to this wolf because that tugging is getting harder and harder to resist. She suddenly calls out without meaning to. "Kiba!" He turns to look back at her and it is just like from her dream. Kiba standing there on a rockface with a snowy peak in the background, the last mountain in a range of three. The breeze ruffling his fur. That majestic look in his eyes. Their eyes lock and Astra feels something she hasn't felt in a long time. She felt a sort of peace come over her in the presence of this wolf and the further away he went from her the more she felt that tugging at her soul. Suddenly, she couldn't see herself without being at the side of this wolf. It's like, everything she went through in her life has led to this moment. this wolf was her friend from her puphood and she was really about to let him go off on his own with no memories of his previous life. She suddenly couldn't take it anymore. She ran up to him and bounded up to the ledge he was standing on. She gave him a lick on the chin and said, "I changed my mind. I want to travel with you."

"Astra, are you sure. I don't even know nothing about my past. It could be dangerous."

"I don't care. I would follow you to the ends of the earth and I don't even know why. All I know is that I belong at your side. I will follow you to the ends of the earth Kiba. You will always be able to count on me. I promise."

Kiba looked into her eyes for a few moments and found there that she was telling the truth. He could smell the excitement coming off of her about the journey ahead and knew that she would be a good ally. "I appreciate having you along Astra. I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing, but hopefully, I'll get my memories back. Until then, I'll trust and rely on you. I really feel like I can trust you. You could have left me for dead but you did everything in your power to help me. I'll forever be in your debt." He looked off into the distance. after a moment he said, "Let's go." And he took off up the cliff face and started running to the west, Astra right beside him, both running toward their destinys.

* * *

Tsume couldn't get over his shock. The biker jacket, same one he was wearing as a matter of fact. The tattoos, the bald head, the handle bar mustache. It was really him but his mind wouldn't accept the shock. There was no way. No way that he was still alive. Even with the burn scars on his face, he still was having trouble registering in his mind that this was the same person. He couldn't get around the fact that Clutch was alive.

"What's the matter pup? You look like you've seen a ghost?" He said with amusement.

"Clutch, is that really you?"

"Yeah, It's really me. But I don't go by Clutch any more. I Just go by my actual name now. So you can call me Koda. And I happen to be the Alpha of this pack of devients."

"How are you even alive?

Koda takes a seat across from Tsume "Well, long story short, the blast threw me away from the shop. I was shot and badly burned. My only saving grace is that one of the wolves from this pack happened to be in the city trying to get some food. If she hadn't found me, than I would have been a wolf Barbeque. It just so happens that this particular wolf happened to be the daughter of the Alpha of this pack. She drug me all the way back here and they nursed me back to health. As you can see, there wasn't anything they could do about the burn scars. It wasn't long after that this particular she wolf decided she was going to be my mate and didn't take no for an answer. We had a couple of litters and things were good. Wasn't too long after that her father died. Next thing I know, I'm the alpha. I've been doing the best I could to continue what he started. Trying to rescue other wolves from the clutches of the humans. We found Blue. She had been attacted by a bear. Doss and Shay actually tracked her down. Ever since we brought her back, we've been trying to find the rest of her pack. Finally found them too. After helping driving the humans off, here we are, five days later. From what I here, your alpha's missing and so is the flower maiden."

"I don't know if I would call that dumbass my alpha or not. He's not very bright. He got himself captured by Jagura for petes sake. Would any true alpha have lost the flower maiden?"

"Shit happens. You know that by now."

"Yeah. Speaking of which, Is that she wolf gonna make it. The one who took those bullets for the Runt?"

"Yeah. It was a near thing, but she's gonna make a full recovery as far as we know. That Skyla's one tough bitch."

"I think she might be kin to the Runt."

"How do you figure?"

"The bracelets."

"Good point. That seems more than a coincidence. Why don't you get yourself some rest. I'll explain things later. Right now, I'm tired as crap."

"I hear ya. Damn man, I still can't believe you're alive. Still ugly as ever though."

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up tough guy. You ain't looking pretty yourself." Koda gave him a wink with his good eye. "Get some sleep Tsume. We'll talk more in the morning."

"Sounds good Koda. Goodnight."

"Night."

And with that, the two wolves go their seperate ways to try to catch some sleep. In the morning, several wolves find their true destinies.


End file.
